Anadolu Efes Head Coach Ergin Ataman said that they want to break new ground by becoming the champion for the 3rd time in a row in the THY Europa League.
Making statements to the press members at the Sinan Erdem Sports Hall before the new season, Ataman said, “We are starting with big goals, as we did last season. There was great activity in the transfer period in the Europa League this season. We saw that the teams strengthened their rosters and went to revision. It is the goal of all teams. We are a team. We also made some important changes related to last season. The management made serious sacrifices, managed to keep two players like Micic and Larkin in the team. We transferred players who took serious minutes in the Europa League, such as Clyburn, Zizic and Polonara. We also strengthened our squad ” said.
Noting that it is clear that there will be a great competition in the THY Europa League, the experienced coach said, “It is very difficult to say anything from today. We started badly in the Europa League last season, then we barely recovered, but we reached the goal. We want to start well this season. Larkin’s injury “It’s a disadvantage that he won’t be playing for a while because of the club, but we don’t think of it as an excuse, and we want to win the championship for 3 years in a row, which has not been done in the history of the Europa League by starting well, which no club has been able to achieve. There is no team that has done this before, we will try to achieve this.” used the phrases.
“WHO’S GOOD GAMES”
Stating that their goals are high in the new season, Ataman said, “We are starting a new season. Our goals are big. Our opponents are strong in every lane. I think this season will be a big fight both in the Turkish League and in the Europa League. The team also changed compared to previous years. At the beginning of the season. We have 5 new players. I think we fitted them well in the preparation period. We will open the season with Galatasaray Nef match on Sunday. Then we will open the Europa League season against Red Star. Our goals are the same. We will look at the future step by step. We will open the Europa League and the Turkish League separately. We need to evaluate. Whoever is the best plays in the Europa League. Any Turkish, Serbian, American, French does not matter to us. As in Sertaç, there are Turkish players who played a serious role in this team in the past. The players we assign in this style are better than our local players. Yiğitcan Saybir left in Turkey, we transferred Egehan Arna. I don’t think we have a shortage or a surplus in the Turkish League in terms of domestic rotation compared to n years. We used local players a lot last year in the league. Whoever is the best in the team whose goal is the championship in the Europa League, plays.”
Emphasizing that they need to be better for the THY Europa League championship, Ataman said, “There are players who have just joined the team this season. Some of them came last week. I think the team had a good preparation period. Maybe we played well in the Fenerbahçe match, but I can’t say that we are ready for the Europa League. “We made serious mistakes in the second half. The team will settle down in time. We played many friendly matches. Playing high-level matches may have prepared us better for the President’s Cup. I don’t think this match is much of a measure. Fenerbahce is a newer team than us. The performance in this match is European. “I don’t think it will be enough for the league. We have to be better.” made a statement.
“WE WANT TO PREPARE WELL AND START WITH A WIN”
Noting that they want to win the first league match of the season they will play with Galatasaray Nef on Sunday, the navy blue-white head coach said, “Galatasaray put us through the semi-final series last season. They went through a serious staff change. They only have 1 foreign player from last season. I can’t predict how the match will be from that point of view. I will start the analysis of Galatasaray tonight, but it will be a good match. Both teams will want to start the league by winning. It will be a difficult match for sure. In such matches. It will not be a favourite. We want to prepare well and start with a win.” made its assessment.
Noting that they wanted to create offensive diversity in the navy blue-white team, the experienced head coach said, “We made the transfers to gain diversity in the offensive. Recently, the man change defense started in the teams to stop the basketball we played. “We have done that very well. The players have to get used to each other better. I think this will give us strength. I think our squad is more capable, broader and more offensive in terms of attacking this season.” he said.
Noting that Anadolu Efes is a team that is embraced not only by its fans but also by basketball fans, Ataman said, “Synergy is very important. Last season, the last 8-9 games played in the Europa League were sold out here. I think this will be the case from the first game this season. Anadolu Efes “Efes team is a proud team adopted not only by its own fans but also by the masses who love basketball. There has been a very serious show and atmosphere at Sinan Erdem in the past years, not only as a success. We want to win every match. This does not create pressure, on the contrary, it gives a serious strength.” ” he said.
Ataman said that the defeat of the National Men’s Basketball Team against France in the last 16 rounds of the European Basketball Championship made his morale very low. “I joined Anadolu Efes camp to forget the last moments of the match. Right now, I’m totally concentrating on Anadolu Efes. National team matches will start in November. All players are in their own teams. When the time comes, I will concentrate on the national team again for that 1-week period.” said.
“ALL OUR PLAYERS SHOUT FOR THE SUCCESS OF THE NATIONAL TEAM”
Expressing that the national players were worn out after the France match, Ataman said:
“After the France match, I did not speak for a long time. There was criticism and attrition in the public opinion over some of our players and Cedi Osman. I think that all our players, who served in the National Team, put up a great fight with great devotion throughout the tournament. Larkin, who is the most important part of our team, said: Despite not playing in France as a result of the MR taken after the Spain match, his character and struggle against a strong and championship candidate like France was something that Turkish sports fans should be proud of. It can happen to anyone if Cedi Osman misses 2 foul shots in the last episode. The best player of the Italian National Team, Fontecchio, missed 2 foul shots in the France match and maybe he lost Italy’s medal. It’s not just the player, it’s the technical staff, so it’s a good side game We couldn’t plan it. Before the match, no one thought that the Turkish National Team would beat France. We were very close to achieving this. Sometimes there are individual mistakes and team mistakes in sports. We all made a mistake together and maybe those mistakes won the championship that no one believed in. All of our players, especially Cedi, worked very hard for the success of the national team throughout the tournament. We have no right to defame any of our players. We have to protect our players. Only in Turkey, players begin to be criticized from the first match. We need to create a synergy both in the public and within the team. We can’t get anywhere with negative thinking. We will have important matches ahead of us. I think that the National Team will definitely achieve a medal in the 2025 European Championship. Let’s support this team.”
Regarding the social media posts made by the relatives of the national players after the France match, Ataman said, “There is no big deal.” He said, “You are not with this team as the press. You do not follow it. How many press organizations were in Berlin during the National Team’s France match? I will invite the magazine press from now on. Maybe there will be more news.” found on your site.
Stating that Shane Larkin, who continues to be injured, may be able to play the match in November, Ataman said, “We will evaluate whether we will transfer at this stage at our board meeting. ‘Who is the idle playmaker?’ “If we find a player to fill Larkin’s vacancy, we can evaluate it for a few months. I will report to the management, the decision will be made by the management.” used the phrases.
Regarding FIBA’s situation of making changes in match days so that they do not conflict with Europa League matches, Ataman said, “If the Europa League also takes an approach and moves Thursday-Friday matches to Wednesday-Thursday, at least the matches will not overlap. It is a positive development in my opinion. A step has been taken. It is not very difficult to resolve this. I think there will be a solution in good faith when the two sides sit at the table. National teams are also very important. The last 4 matches have been entered in the World Cup qualifiers. A critical turning point for everyone. I find FIBA’s approach positive. Europa League If he also pulls his matches to Tuesday-Wednesday, the matter will be solved at some point.” he concluded his speech.