By Eurohoops Team/ info@eurohoops.net
Following a back-and-forth affair in Round 16 of the 2025-26 EuroLeague Regular Season, 59-year-old Ergin Ataman combined a recap of a huge win for Panathinaikos Aktor over Fenerbahce Beko with a rant against home supporters in the stands of Istanbul’s Ulker Sports Arena.
“I am very upset. OK, in the first half we played very well, but we started the second half very badly. And we stopped in our offense, we missed everything, and Fenerbahce got a nine or ten-point lead. We lost control of the game. In that period, I don’t understand all the Turkish people on the stands, ten thousand Fenerbahce people, started a song against my mother, 87 years old. So, God helped us. Players started being aggressive. We started to make defensive plays. And God helped us to give the answer on the court one more time,” he shared in a postgame interview.
“I think that Euroleague must make somebody understand, local teams, this kind of language,” he added, visibly upset, “This is not fair in basketball. We play basketball. I’m proud to be a Turkish national team coach. I’m proud of what I’m making here. But these 10,000 people are uneducated.”
The team coached by the 59-year-old Istanbul native improved to 10-6, reducing the defending champions to 9-6. Completing the latest double-game week on the schedule of Europe’s premier club competition, the Greens are moving to a meeting with the standings leader Hapoel IBI Tel Aviv in Telekom Center Athens on Thursday.