Partizan’s greatest legend faces a pivotal decision after fans and board mount an emotional campaign to keep him in charge
Zeljko Obradovic receives hero's welcome as Partizan's fans and board rally behind him
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Zeljko Obradovic may not be leaving Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade just yet. The day after he posted a letter to Partizan fans, informing them of his decision to step away from his position, many are attempting to persuade the legendary head coach to stay.
Obradovic received the full support of the club’s Board of Directors at a Thursday afternoon meeting, followed by a hero’s welcome at Belgrade’s airport, where thousands of Partizan faithful greeted the nine-time EuroLeague winning coach to "help" him change his mind.
Now the basketball world waits to hear from Obradovic whether the tenure of the EuroLeague’s winningest coach will continue at his beloved Partizan, the team he guided to the club’s only continental championship back in 1992.
Obradovic returned to Partizan in June of 2021, and his arrival started a movement that has turned into celebrations of basketball at Partizan home games.
“It shouldn’t end like this! Partizan, that is you”, is what Partizan center Aleksej Pokusevski wrote on his Instagram Story as a message to the 65-year-old head coach.
Team captain Vanja Marinkovic posted a message on WhatsApp: “If there is a chance we continue, let’s prove it together that we are different. There is a practice on Saturday… I hope together.”
Obradovic resigned on Wednesday following a 22-point loss at Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens, a game where his team allowed a 25-0 second-half run that turned a 2-point back-and-forth affair into a full-scale blowout. It was also Partizan’s seventh defeat in the last eight EuroLeague games, as the team dropped to 4-9.
After the game in Athens, Obradovic had no answer to the question of how and what to change. The day after, he submitted his resignation.
But perhaps only until the voices of tens of thousands of fans, unwilling to accept the departure of the club’s greatest legend, grew too loud.