On the back of last week's club record-breaking comeback against Maccabi, Zeljko Obradovic will make his latest return to Athens as Partizan (11-10) looks to narrow the gap on Panathinaikos (13-10).
Zeljko Obradovic, Partizan: 'I know it will be a phenomenal atmosphere'
Seasons
3 Minuto di lettura
Regular Season
Round 22 of 34
Group Regular Season
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Another player facing his former club is Greens big man and last week's MVP Mathias Lessort, who was outplayed by 23 points from fit-again Zach LeDay when Partizan prevailed, 92-87, after overtime in Belgrade in November. The Serbian team will also have to find an answer for Kendrick Nunn, who scored 19 points in that game and also poured in 21 as Panathinaikos impressively overpowered Monaco last time out.
Ergin Ataman, Panathinaikos head coach
"The worst thing we can do now is be on party-time mode. After the Monaco game we did not work well all week, we had many injured and sick players, so we are not ready for this game. The worst thing we can do is take this game as if it was a party before winning. OK, we are in a good position but there are 14 games left that we must win. Partizan is a very disciplined team, they fight every game. They beat us in Belgrade coming from 10 points behind. We have to focus on this game or it will be a disaster. They are missing Punter, but we also have many absences."
Zeljko Obradovic, Partizan head coach
"Their team is in great shape, they are playing really well. I know it will be a phenomenal atmosphere in Athens. After a long time, Panathinaikos is among top teams at the table in the EuroLeague. They made such a team that they have the biggest ambitions, we talked about all that before our first game in Belgrade. A team that deserves respect, but we also have our chances and can play a good game."
Ioannis Papapetrou, Panathinaikos player
"I'm happy to be healthy and playing again. This is the most important thing for me. It will be a very difficult game. Partizan is a very fighting team and we have to give our 100 percent because it is a very important game. Partizan plays like a team. They are very combative. They have some very dangerous players, it's not just Kevin Punter. We have to be very careful in general. We have to control the game through our defense."
Alen Smailagic, Partizan player
"We all know that it will be a very tough game. We know how they have been playing lately, that they have good players. Likewise, we also are on a run with two straight victories. We hope to be focused enough and aggressive enough to win in Athens."