Papapetrou: “It’s unimaginable – Nobody remembers the runner-up, we want the trophy and that’s why we’ve come”

He described it as inconceivable Ioannis Papapetrou the qualification of Panathinaikos AKTOR to final of the Euroleague, after the victory (73-57) of the “greens” over Fener.

The Greek forward emphasized that the goal of the “clover” is the trophy. He characterized it as… surreal that last year Panathinaikos AKTOR finished 17th and this year is in the final.

Also, praise him Ergin Ataman and the Kostas Sloukaswhile he dripped… honey for him Panagiotis Kalaitzakis but also him Costa Antetokounmpo.

“Incredible feelings, I have no words. We were 17th last year, with so many new faces, a new coach… It’s incredible what we’ve achieved, but we’re not done. Nobody remembers the runner-up, we want the trophy and that’s why we’ve come. Everything changed in the summer when coach Ataman came and Slukas changed the mentality and brought the winning mentality. Since the summer we have set the goal of the Final 4 and… here we are, in the final.

Panathinaikos is where it deserves to be. The atmosphere our world creates is a blessing, it’s awesome to be in a stadium like that and play. For Greece it will be good to have a Greek final, it will be beautiful, but it doesn’t matter for us. We want to rest and give everything we have on Sunday“, initially reported the 30-year-old ace, who characterized as “inconceivable» the success.

Also, Ioannis Papapetrou was asked about:

-whether it is also a personal justification for his return to Panathinaikos:

“I’ve said it before. No, it’s not personal justification. I have said before that I know how I work, I know how focused I am on what I do. I said it before the Final Four, regardless of the result, I feel good, I’ve worked well and I want to help».

-what was it that Panathinaikos did that was so dominant:

“Our defense. The energy, everyone who entered the stadium brought great energy. Panos Kalaitzakis changed the momentum of the game for mewith incredible energy in defense, with the three-pointer, with the shots he made, it changed the whole flow of the game. It’s something very difficult for a kid of Panos’ age to do, without Final Four experience. But also Kostas Antetokounmpo, all the guys who entered the court gave something defensively, they fought, we put our bodies. That’s the only way you win games like this and, I haven’t seen the stats, the rebounding battle, but I felt in the game that we played really hard».

-his thoughts ahead of the final:



“I haven’t had time to think about it, we haven’t had time to figure it out. Last year Panathinaikos was 17th, this year Panathinaikos is in the Euroleague final. One match away from our big goal. I don’t know if it’s happened before, it’s surreal. We have to calm down, rest and go in for 40 minutes and give it our all. It is very important to prepare, whoever the opponent is, to give everything».

@sporfm946 The statements of Ioannis Papapetrou after Panathinaikos qualified for the Final 4 of the Euroleague #uberarena #euroleaguefinalfour #fyp??viral #fyp #panathinaikos #euroleague ? original sound – sporfm946