Ataman: “It is normal for us to train at the home of the opponent, the derby is very important for both teams”

Statements ahead of tomorrow’s (14/3, 19:45) derby of the “eternals” were made by the Panathinaikos coach, Ergin Ataman.

After explaining the decision made by his team to train in SEF, he emphasized how important the victory is for the two teams, while he wished that the two teams would not meet in the Euroleague playoffs as well, because then there would be too many derbies between the two teams during the season.

In detail what the coach of Panathinaikos said:



On the decision to train his team in SEF: “In each of our away games in the Euroleague, we practice on the field where the match will take place. I don’t care if it’s a derby or not, it’s normal for us, so we’ll keep doing it. And Olympiacos is welcome to come to our stadium if they want before our games for the championship playoffs.

It may seem strange to some, but to us it is normal. I like my team to train at the opponent’s ground, the same goes for the rest of our away games. Of course, there is a great rivalry between us, but in all the derbies we played this year it was fair game. This may be the first time this has been done, but I hope it continues. The basketball battle on the floor is normal for everyone, we are talking about two top teams. If Bartzokas does not want his team to train at OAKA, it is his choice. I also did it in the Efes derby with Fenerbahce in Turkey”.

For the differences compared to the meeting of the two teams in the Cup final: “It is different. The two teams will play with the rosters they have in the Euroleague, Olympiacos will have more foreigners at its disposal. We don’t have injured Vildosa and Antetokounmpo. In the Cup we did not play good basketball, the score was very low and we lost. So far we have played Olympiakos 5 times, in two we lost by big margins, in the Euroleague we lost in extra time, but we beat them in both games. Olympiacos leads 3-2, I hope we don’t meet in the playoffs of the Euroleague, because I believe that if everything goes well, we will also play with them in the finals of the Basket League, and there will be too many derbies between us”.

On whether the winner of tomorrow’s derby will get home field advantage in the playoffs: “We still have six games, tomorrow is the first and for us it is very important to win. I believe if we beat 5 of them we will be in the top four. Every game will be difficult, we have a difficult schedule and the derby with Olympiakos is one of the most difficult games for us. Olympiacos is a very good team, they play very nice basketball, they have a very good mentality and nobody wins easily here. It will be a very important match for both teams, we have just one point difference. It will be important, not only for the top four, but also for a place in the top six and direct qualification to the playoffs. We will be ready”.