By Cesare Milanti / info@eurohoops.net
Speaking on Bayern Munich’s official website – full interview here – ahead of the second game in the Bundesliga and the EuroLeague debut against ALBA Berlin at home, Pablo Laso commented on the first months on the Bavarian bench.
After getting the first win of his new adventure – beating Syntainics MBC 96-87 with 16 points from Leandro Bolmaro, one of Bayern Munich’s new faces – following 11 years at Real Madrid, the Spanish head coach is living a new life in Germany.
Talking about the growth of basketball there, Pablo Laso is optimistic. “I’ve known Marko Pesic and his whole family for decades, and we have a very good relationship”, he first talked about his connection with Marko Pesic. “From the first day I talked to him about Bayern, I felt like we had the same vision. Also, it seems like the ideal moment: German basketball is on the rise, not only because of the World Cup win but also because the league has improved significantly. It was as if something inside me said that I was making the right choice”, he went on to add about the basketball culture in the country.
Touching on the World Cup victory by Gordie Herbert’s national team, the legendary EuroLeague figure had nothing but great words. “The Germans have fantastic players who have gone through tremendous development. In addition, Gordon Herbert has put together a perfect mix. The Germans had the patience required to win the World Cup. Last year, they lost to Spain in the semifinals of the European Championship, a strong game they could have won. But nobody panicked. They waited and knew they were now competitive”, he said on the German national team which brought gold medals home.
Having three World Champions (Isaac Bonga, Andreas Obst, and Niels Giffey) on his team, expectations may rise. But Pablo Laso isn’t worried about it. “Expectations must always be high at FC Bayern. We want to be competitive from day one. We want to be angry when we lose and happy when we win. At the same time, we also need the right perspective for the future. And that’s something you have to work on day by day. My goal is to have a team where everyone feels that giving their best every day is essential”, the 55-year-old also added.
During the interview, Pablo Laso also talked about the importance people gave to results. “I definitely want to win every game. But we all know it’s impossible. In Madrid, there were times when we won, and I wasn’t satisfied because I felt we could have done better, and sometimes we didn’t win, but I was still very satisfied. Results are very important; they are a part of our lives. However, I consider it shortsighted to think that victories are the most important thing. Rather, I want to mold my players so that I can say: We may not have won every trophy, and yet the time we spent together was a gain”, the former Real Madrid head coach stated.