By Manos Fyrogenis/ info@eurohoops.net
Nemanja Nedovic returned home, but his team years in Greece still have a special place in his heart. That’s why he talked for the first time about the way he left Panathinaikos, the move of Kostas Sloukas to Panathinaikos, and first and foremost about the current situation in Serbian basketball.
As Nedovic admitted, having the experience of the Greek derby between Olympiacos and Panathinaikos, things are on another level the last few years in Serbia: “I was here two years ago playing against Olympiacos. It was always tense it was always a great atmosphere in OAKA and SEF. And then I went to Crvena Zvezda and I can say that the hate between the two teams was never like it is right now. It was something I was really surprised by”.
Of course, Nedovic understands why this happens, but he is still surprised: “I guess it has to do with the fact that both teams have great ambitions, they invested a lot of money and they really want to win. The atmosphere that it’s created between fans I think gets out of control sometimes and I don’t think it’s good for the sport. It also affects us, as players, which is not good, but it is something that you have to handle. I hope it can get better, I don’t see it getting better honestly, but the hate between the two teams and between the two fan bases is at an all-time high. I think that everybody needs to remember that at the end of the day, it’s just sports and there are more important things in life”.
And while he admits that “Crvena Zvezda is the team of my life, I am really happy to be at home again” and the fans of Olympiacos and Crvena Zvezda are considered a brotherhood, he doesn’t hide the special place that Panathinaikos has for him.
As he said: “I have a special place in my heart for all the people in Panathinaikos, probably because it was a tough time. I started playing well from the beginning and when you show the people that you are playing like that, people start loving you, and the love that they show to you is just unbelievable. I really appreciate it to this day”.
Nedovic on the Sloukas move to Panathinaikos: “It takes some balls to do that”
Nemanja Nedovic also talked about the move of Kostas Sloukas to Panathinaikos, admitting that this kind of transfer is not an easy decision: “I was a little bit shocked honestly, for me, Sloukas was kind of the face of Olympiacos. It was a surprise for me. I don’t know what went on behind the curtains, as a fan of Panathinaikos is always good to have such a player and it takes some balls to do that, knowing how passionate Greek fans and Greek people are”.
Watch the full interview for Nedovic’s takes on coaches Sfairopoulos and Ivanovic, the Serbian national team and coach Pesic, plus the chance he had to return to the NBA back in 2018, but at the time he preferred Milan.