Bartzokas: "Games against Bayern are always difficult"
Olympiacos traveled to Munich, where tomorrow (17/11, 20.30 CET) he will be playing against Bayern, for the 8th Euroleague round.
The ‘red & whites’ will be meeting up with the three internationals, Kostas Papanikolaou, Giannoulis Larentzakis and Michalis Lountzis, who, following the National Team’s game against Belgium, traveled directly from the venue of the game to the German city.
“Preparation took place without three of our core players, but anyway, everything is fine… Our preparation has been a good one, but, as you can understand, we were missing three guards”, was the comment Giorgos Bartzokas after been questioned on the matter.
He said about Bayern: “They made a bad start, but right now, they seem to be in a good momentum. They have won their latest games and all the more, their last game in Berlin was very important to them and gives them extra boost and confidence. They play a particular style in Munich, with great energy, putting a lot of pressure on the ball. We have to match their energy and play as needed”.
When told that Bayern is using physicality to cover for the lack of offensive talent, he made clear that … “I disagree. I think they have a big roster, because the German League demands, as I have been told by their coach, a great depth because they play a lot of games. They have many solutions both in the perimeter, but they are also very experienced inside. I think that games against Bayern are always difficult both thanks to their coach, but also because of the team. A team that is always competing for the German title, they have been making the Euroleague playoffs also in the last couple of years. There is no easy game in the Euroleague, that’s 100% certain. However, this particular one and given our situation, that is a not thorough preparation, makes it even harder”.
Asked how he feels that the Olympiacos’ players had a decisive role in the National Team’s victory and qualification and if he thinks that they are going to need a different kind of management given their emotional status, he replied: “I’m happy the National Team has qualified for the Mundobasket and I’m certainly happy that three of our players have played a significant role in that. But you are right. It is obvious that we need to discuss with them. They are tired, Papanikolaou played for 38 minutes, Larentzakis more than 30, Lountzis had 20’ in a high energy game. It was very demanding, not only in terms of intensity, but also due to the stress caused by the importance of the game. Usually, after such games, you get to relax a little bit, but these players are called to play a very demanding game in two days time. We are going to talk with them in Munich, because that’s where we are going to be meeting with them and we’ll see…” .