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Fenerbahce Ulker head coach Bogdan Tanjevic
"Nothing is easy and also nothing is impossible in our group. The distance of power between the teams is getting closer every year and for that reason, every coming year is harder than before. We have some similar neighbors in the group like Tau Ceramica and Virtus Roma and a very tough new one like DKV Joventut. They deserved to be in Euroleague with their extraordinary performance in ULEB Cup last season. They are a great team in great harmony of excellent team players. There's nothing much to say about Tau Ceramica as they are the traditional powerhouse of the contest. Of course, you can never underestimate Virtus Roma as well as Union Olimpija and Alba Berlin. That's why I cannot say our group is better than last year. The thing is important for us is we have to be better than last season. We have to prove something that we had a good experience from last year’s matches that we played with our young and talented team. We all will see how far we have progressed."
FC Barcelona head coach Xavier Pascual
"It's one of the most complicated groups. Panathinaikos is one of the strongest teams in Europe, Siena was in the Final Four last year and Zalgiris is a very complete team, as are all Lithuanian teams. The new format of competition does not allow for many mistakes. We of course hope to be in the Top 16. We will have to go step by step and be competitive in every game."
Real Madrid head coach Joan Plaza
"I think that all regular season groups are tough this season. We have to face the defending champion, CSKA Moscow. We also have a very tough road game in Belgrade. Efes Pilsen has restructured its team really well. In theory, these three are tour strongest opponents in this group. Taking that into account, we know that Milano and Panionios are traditional teams that will want to leave its mark in the competition and compete to get to the Top 16. Every change that makes the competition easier, more fair and more flexible is welcomed. This new format is great for fans, because it is easier to see everything. We know now that those four teams surviving the regular season that compete at a very high level."
CSKA Moscow head coach Ettore Messina
"I think the new system makes it very difficult. When you look at the four groups, it's difficult to imagine in each group which are the two teams that will stay out of the Top 16. It's going to be a very hard competition, and I think that everyone needs be extremely ready from game one. We have a group with tradition, we have a trip back to my home country, Italy, to play Armani Jeans, and we have a big, big game with Real Madrid in the town where we just won the Euroleague. So it's a tough group and, as I said before, I think we need to be ready from the beginning. Having changed three or four players, we'll have to use as well as possible the preseason we are going to have."
Avellino head coach Zare Markovski
"It is a great honor for Avellino to be in the Euroleague. It is a prize for the great season we just had. We now have to increase the club organizations and our teams. Fans have the chance to see what the Euroleague is about, not only the Italian League. Every group is tough, but in our group there are three teams, Maccabi, Olympiacos and Unicaja, that have everything they need to reach the Top 16. We hope that we can fight for the fourth remaining spot with Cibona and Le Mans. Our fans were following Euroleague.net all morning long to see the Draw on video streaming. They have followed the whole draw and it is the first chance to show them what they can expect."
Armani Jeans Milano head coach Piero Bucchi
“The group that we were drawn into is certainly difficult as was expected given the teams in the draw, but at the same time a very exciting group. It will be difficult to get through and reach the Top16, but with great enthusiasm, the desire to do well and the desire to win for our fans will give us an important charge to help us reach that goal. We will give everything we have on every court in every game.
Montepaschi Siena head coach Simone Pianigiani
“We'll be facing a very tough group. But this is normal when you are fighting for the championship. The big difference is in the format: There will be four fewer games than the previous seasons, so you must be ready soon. There will be less space to recover from mistakes so the most important thing is to get focused and in a good shape from the first game.”
Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv head coach Effi Birenboim
"It's not an easy draw. We're still building our team for next season. I promise we'll be ready for the challenge and we’ll build the strongest team possible to compete in this strong Euroleague group and season. It's going to be special to play against Yotam and Nikola, but we have to think about ourselves and how to win each game.".
Efes Pilsen head coach Ergin Ataman
“I am happy with the draws. Our aim is to reach the top places of the Euroleague by the end of the season like we used to do in the past. We are hoping to reach the Final Four, but for this we have to work a lot and we have to go step by step. First of all we have to finish the regular season in one of the top two places to get the advantage for the Top 16. I think that we can do that. And will look forward to passing all the stages and to reach the top place that we can.”
Partizan head coach Dusko Vujosevic
”All the teams are strong and all the groups are extremely quality. In my own opinion, our group and Group B are a little bit stronger, but only in nuances. Competition in an easier group is not a guarantee for the Top 16 phase as is hardwork and a good team. These are 24 of the best teams in Europe, best players, best coaches, teams with the best logistics. We can go through if we build a competitive team like we had the last two years. We lost our best players in Nikola Pekovic, Dusan Kecman and Milt Palacio and we are trying to complete the team. I think six victories could guarantee reaching the Top 16.
Panathinaikos head coach Zelimir Obradovic
“It’ ok. It is clear, as we realized last season, that the Top 16 and playoffs count more than the regular season, so we have to pay attention to every given game. It’s too early to evaluate the teams, since they have not completed their rosters yet, but for Panathinaikos the target is always to be on the top, both in the domestic competitions and the Euroleague. We have a good team and I am optimistic that we can achieve our goals. I am also expecting to have a good atmosphere and a great support from our fans, in order to achieve the best possible results.”
Olympiacos head coach Panagiotis Giannakis
"Attention, concentration and patience are all we need in every game, so we can have good results. You can never say that a draw is good or bad, because it is something that will be decided at the end. We will play against experienced, but also against young teams and we have the right to make our dreams. All the teams want and they will try hard to achieve their goals and we respect them a lot."
Panionios head coach Aleksandar Trifunovic
"We cannot make predictions at this moment, since the rosters are still ongoing. Sure, we have a challenging group with great and traditional teams, such as CSKA Moscow and Real Madrid. Also Efes Pilsen is a big Euroleague name. Panionios returns to the Euroleague with the ambition to stay competitive and to fight for the best possible result every night. Our fans will enjoy great, games and big stars of international basketball."
Cibona head coach Velimir Perasovic
"At this moment a lot of teams still don't have complete rosters, so we do not know what we are up against. Still, we respect everyone. Any team that would have come from the top three seeds would have been among best 10 or 15 teams in Europe considering their budget and their tradition. All the groups are of similar quality, we have our chance if we put together the team we want to. Olympiacos, Maccabi and Unicaja are the cream of European basketball, Le Mans has a lot of Euroleague experience, while Avellino will have its Euroleague debut, but it is a dangerous team considering they have won the Italian Cup and made it to the Italian playoff semifinals. We see our chance, and I believe we will have a team worthy of the Top 16."
Panathinaikos captain Fragiskos Alvertis
"Every draw has its own secrets and difficulties. There are not easy opponents in such a great competition, so all the opponents need attention and respect. We start the season with the same ambition: To win it all! Panathinaikos is ready to come up big in the Euroleague and to prove its potential."
Maccabi Electra forward Tal Burstein
"After so many years playing alongside Yotam [Halperin] and Nikola [Vujcic], it will be very strange to step on court and play against them, but I guess it was written in the heavens that this will happen. I had a very strong feeling before the draw we'll play against them. It's a very tough group. We played Le Mans, Unicaja, Cibona and Olympiacos the past season and it wasn't easy, while Avelino is a new team and they'll try hard to show they belong."
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