Check out what the coaches and players are saying ahead of Round 7 of the 2025-26 EuroLeague season
Pregame quotes, Round 7: 'There's a rivalry between us and Olympiacos'
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Wednesday, October 29
Hapoel IBI Tel Aviv vs. Partizan Mozzart Bet Belgrade (19:00 CET)
Dimitris Itoudis, Hapoel head coach
"We continue our EuroLeague journey against a very physical and athletic team. They’ve faced some difficulties recently, but with Željko leading them and their fighting spirit, we’re expecting a real battle. It’s going to be a tough game - Partizan has plenty of experience and physical strength. We’ll need to match their physicality, stay focused, and keep improving as a team, becoming more consistent in both our defensive and offensive play on the court."
Zeljko Obradovic, Partizan head coach
"Hapoel is the current leader in the EuroLeague. They’re playing well, with clear ideas, combining both individual and team quality. They always know exactly where and whom they’re attacking, and we’ve tried to prepare for that in our practices and we’ll keep working on it today as well. A tough game awaits us, but we have to give our best."
Vanja Marinkovic, Partizan guard
"Hapoel is a very good team, and even though they’re new to the EuroLeague, they’ve already shown why they deserve to be here. They’re currently at the top of the standings and have a really strong roster. It’s definitely going to be a tough game on their court, but I hope we’ll deliver a much better performance than we did against Paris."
Olympiacos Piraeus vs. AS Monaco (20:15 CET)
Georgios Bartzokas, Olympiacos head coach
"They are one of the toughest teams to face in the EuroLeague. They are one of the strongest teams, with great experience, with players like Mirotic, Nedovic, and James, who have extensive experience in the competition, and of course a talented and athletic team. I think our approach should be that we must not look at our record, we must not think about what we’ll do in the first round or what schedule we have afterward. We need to focus on this game, be especially effective, stick to our plan, and in front of our fans, try to win — something that of course won’t be easy; it will require a great effort and a strong performance."
Nikola Milutinov, Olympiacos center
"It will be a tough game. They play very hard. They are a very well-coached team, so we have to work hard to get the result we want."
Vassilis Spanoulis, Monaco head coach
"Olympiacos is one of the teams competing for the EuroLeague title this year. Against this kind of team, you have to pay attention to every detail. We're ready to go out there and fight and bring back the best result possible."
Matthew Strazel, Monaco guard
"Since Coach arrived, it's true that games against Olympiacos have been a little more special. With the games we've had in the past, there's a rivalry between us. We need to improve our consistency; we're too inconsistent. Now there are no more excuses; we've had time since the start of the season. It's time to come together and show what kind of team we can be. Olympiacos is well-equipped, and so are we. The team that wins this game will be the one that puts in the most defensive effort and makes the fewest mistakes."
Tuesday, October 28
Crvena Zvezda Meridianbet Belgrade vs. LDLC ASVEL Villeurbanne (19:00 CET)
Sasa Obradovic, Crvena Zvezda head coach
"It won't be easy for sure. Every game with new players is a new chemistry. Even when [Jared] Butler comes, he won't be able to arrange everything in one training session. It all depends on all the players, everyone in the club and the fans. I expect that we will have togetherness, I know that some things will not go as we imagined. They are also in a bad situation as far as injured players are concerned. They lack the main ones. I expect the same approach as in the previous games, to be aggressive and I believe that it will be good even under difficult circumstances. It is important that we keep the willing moment."
Donatas Motiejunas, Crvena Zvezda center
"It will be a tough game. The start of the season... teams and players are getting tired, bodies are starting to hurt. We're missing a few players, I'm sure they don't have the full roster either. I spoke to the boys, these are games we have to win. We have to save the home ground. If we want to make the playoffs, we have to do it."
Zalgiris Kaunas vs. Virtus Bologna (19:00 CET)
Maodo Lo, Zalgiris guard
"Tomorrow is going to be a tough game against a good, talented team. In the EuroLeague, you have stretches where you lose games and hopefully a lot of stretches where you win more games. It's a tough competition, it's always difficult to get wins."
Dusko Ivanovic, Virtus head coach
"Every time you go to Kaunas, your opponents know they’re in for a tough game. Zalgiris is a very strong and combative team that this year is using aggression and ambition as its weapons. So we’re expecting a tough game."
Brandon Taylor, Virtus guard
"Zalgiris is an extremely tough team to face, especially at home, where few manage to come out victorious. They are a very talented team that performs at its best when playing at home, where they give their all in terms of energy and fighting spirit. To compete with them, we will have to fight with equal intensity for all 40 minutes of the game, to the best of our ability."
FC Bayern Munich vs. Real Madrid (20:00 CET)
Gordon Herbert, Bayern head coach
"Real is basically one of the leading EuroLeague teams every year, and this year is no different, I am convinced of that. We expect an energetic game at home in front of our great fans. However, to be able to win against this quality, we need the best teamwork on both ends of the court. Above all, we have to win the rebounding battles and the fight for loose balls."
Stefan Jovic, Bayern guard
"They have made changes to the team for this season and have an extraordinary squad. We have to prepare ourselves for a very physically demanding game and give our maximum on defense."
Sergio Scariolo, Real Madrid head coach
"Bayern is a deep, athletic team with some players who are very strong shooters, a wide variety of players at the 4 and 5 positions, and the ability to intimidate, protect the rim, and finish strong near the basket. They have very reliable point guards with a lot of experience, such as Jovic and Baldwin, and Hollatz himself, who is a recent European champion with Germany, and Obst and Rathan-Mayes as great offensive pillars thanks to their shooting ability in many different situations. Our problem has never been, and you only have to look at the first quarters, the starts, to see that we have concentration from the outset, the game plan and how to approach it. The question is how to maintain it and not have any lapses in concentration, or at least keep them as short as possible. Obviously, when we play at home, we have always found a way to quickly regain that energy and concentration in the game so that we can win every game with a certain degree of confidence. Away from home, it's difficult. It's not that anything changes. It's just that if you give your opponent an easy ride, moments of disconnection, they get carried away by the crowd and then that gap widens, which we always try to close in the end, even though you've already accumulated a disadvantage. That's the fundamental objective. It's not that our concentration is worse at home than away, but away it hurts more to lose it and we have to make sure it stays up."
Usman Garuba, Real Madrid forward
"Bayern Munich is a team that is very difficult to beat, especially at their arena. Tomorrow's game will surely be very tough. We struggled last year, but we are mentally prepared to give it our all and play a good game. We want to get our first away win because it's important, especially mentally, to gain confidence away from home, to be able to win games and put some wins together."
Panathinaikos AKTOR Athens vs. Maccabi Rapyd Tel Aviv (20:15 CET)
Ergin Ataman, Panathinaikos head coach
"I think that except for Rogkavopoulos, everyone practiced. We won’t have anyone new missing tomorrow. Everyone will be on the court except Rogkavopoulos and, of course, Samontourov. The others trained well and will be available for the game. Holmes, Juancho and Nunn trained and I believe they will be ready tomorrow. Maccabi is a very dangerous team. They score a lot, they are fast on offense and experienced. Tamir Blatt is very good in scoring and creating, as is Lonnie Walker, who is an excellent scorer. And Roman Sorkin is very smart. They have experience. They play every game at the same high level. They may only have two wins so far, but they were both important ones — against Hapoel and Real Madrid. They lost to Olympiacos by one point on the final possession. They are a very dangerous team. Our matchups against Maccabi are always tough and the same will be true tomorrow. That’s why we need 100% a strong and intense atmosphere. We need our fans’ help in this difficult moment with all the injuries, to give us extra motivation and extra energy."
Panagiotis Kalaitzakis, Panathinaikos guard
"Our readiness and the way we approach the game must be at a very high level, as we are used to doing. The experience in Bologna definitely cost us psychologically, so tomorrow we must be ready to start very strong, both defensively and offensively. We need to stop Maccabi’s offensive weapons, and on our side we have to play our own game, put our fans into the action, make them our sixth player and give us a big boost — just like they’ve been doing over the last years — and get a great win. Tomorrow we need the win, we must win. It’s a very tough week, with two very difficult games against two very good teams that are not high in the standings right now, so both teams really need the win. We want the win as well, and we want to finish the week with 2/2."
Oded Kattash, Maccabi head coach
"It’s always fun to play in this arena, especially with my personal memories here. I always enjoy being in Greece – it’s one of the most challenging arenas."
TJ Leaf, Maccabi forward
"We’re all excited. It’s a game in a packed arena against a great team. We’ll go out there and play our game. We expect them to come out more focused after their loss, but we’re concentrating on ourselves. They have a lot of talent and players we’ll need to stop. If we play with our passion, I believe we’ll be fine."
Jimmy Clark, Maccabi guard
"They’ll come with a lot of energy, but we need to play together and stick to the game plan. The win gave us confidence – we’re trying to maintain that excitement and use it to our advantage. Greece is a historic country, and Panathinaikos has a great arena."
Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz vs. Dubai Basketball (20:30 CET)
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FC Barcelona vs. EA7 Emporio Armani Milan (20:30 CET)
Joan Penarroya, Barcelona head coach
"Milan is a team with a lot of quality that has a win fewer than us in the EuroLeague, but they lost their last game on the last shot. They have great players and a top coach. I want us to have a solid game, above all in defense. We can't let them find their rhythm."
Tomas Satoransky, Barcelona guard
"From the start, we need to be solid in defense. Milan is a great team, they won their last two times here at Palau in the EuroLeague. We need to be locked in for the whole game and communicate better, not only on offense but on defense as well."
Ettore Messina, Milan head coach
"We face a powerful team. Barcelona has size both on the perimeter and down low. We'll have to contain their inside game, try to control the rebounds and offensively we need to move the ball well and quickly like we have been doing in the last few games. On a side note, it will be a pleasure again to compete against Kevin Punter, a player who gave us a lot during the season he spent in Milan; and will be a challenge to face one more time a great opponent like Toko Shengelia."
Pippo Ricci, Milan forward
"If we look at the standings, we're 2-4, but we lost three games right at the end. We played every game, plus we had four road games in the first five. We were always close. It will be tough in Barcelona, but this EuroLeague shows that anyone can overturn any prediction. They lost their last game at home against Zalgiris, so they'll want to bounce back, but the same goes for us. They have talent and size, they have great players we know well, so we'll have to approach the game in the best possible manner, playing every possession with energy on defense and moving the ball quickly on offense."
Paris Basketball vs. Anadolu Efes Istanbul (20:45 CET)
Igor Kokoskov, Efes head coach
"We are playing six games in 15 days. It is a very tough schedule and there is no time to practice. Paris Basketball is a team which is unconventional, they play different style of basketball. We are aware that they are playing fast, loose and with a high pace in the open court. Our transition defense and rebounding, which is our Achilles’ heel this year, have to be the priority. We always compete, we always play hard but we have to play smart and also we have to play with a poise. We have to limit our turnovers and keep the game under control."
Erkan Yilmaz, Efes forward
"We’re starting the double-game week on the road against Paris Basketball. Our opponent is a team that plays fast and dynamic basketball. We’re preparing to face that style. We need to stop them with our team defense. We want to bring our own basketball to the court and dictate it to our opponent. Our goal is to start the double-game week with a win..."
Valencia Basket vs. Fenerbahce Beko Istanbul (21:00 CET)
Jean Montero, Valencia guard
"We have to keep imposing our rhythm, that's the most important thing. Fenerbahce are the European champions, we have to try to keep a cool head and try to come out physically strong, because I think it's going to be a very physical game. The players who have been injured are integrating back into the team, which is the most important thing, and we hope to continue like this, growing and united as a team."
Jaime Pradilla, Valencia forward
"We saw yesterday that with our fans behind us, the team also grows and that helps us win games, but we know it's going to be a tough game. They are the reigning EuroLeague champions and it's going to be a difficult game. They're having a great season and we know they're not going to make it easy for us. They know our rhythm, our style of play, and they're the best defense in the EuroLeague. We know they're going to try to impose their style of play and their rhythm, and we're going to try not to let them and try to stay in our rhythm and play the way we want to. In the end, it's also about moments, streaks, and the opposing team also plays. It's true that we've played a lot of games, but we haven't been together that long. We have to keep improving, and little by little, I think things are going well."
Sarunas Jasikevicius, Fenerbahce head coach
"Valencia started the season at an amazing pace; they are number one in all the offensive categories, playing very good basketball, very clear system, very well coached. We need to try to slow them down, try to take down their offensive numbers, and we really need to understand what we can give up in this game, what we cannot give up."
Wade Baldwin, Fenerbahce guard
"Valencia is back in the EuroLeague. They've been a high-scoring team, a well-coached team, and have a deep roster, so it's a battle. Obviously, it's a double week for us; we want to go 2-0 in Spain."
