By Alex Molina / info@eurohoops.net
Joan Peñarroya returned to the Palau Blaugrana as Partizan’s coach. The former Barcelona coach couldn’t secure a victory (88-70) in his return to his former home.
In the post-game press conference, he spoke about the team, his return to Barcelona, and how he’s approaching this new chapter with one of the EuroLeague’s lower-ranked clubs.
“First of all, I want to congratulate Barça on their victory,” he began. “We played a very solid first half, missed open shots, and Barça made some good shots. We found ourselves down by six points, and our mentality is a bit low,” he added in the press conference. “The key to the game was the third quarter: we had seven turnovers in four minutes. Barça punished us every time, and we lost confidence,” he continued. “It’s not a game to lose by 18 points, but we have to improve, because if we don’t overcome our slumps, it’s impossible to compete against the top EuroLeague teams,” Peñarroya said.
As expected, the Catalan coach was asked about the reception at the Palau, where he was greeted with thunderous applause. “I’m grateful for the welcome; I didn’t know what to expect. During my time here, it’s clear that, for better or worse, I did the best I could.”
Finally, he wanted to send a message of good luck to his former team. “About Barça, I’ll just say that they’re playing very well, solidly, and winning games. Xavi has added his own touches, but many things were already in place, and he’s been able to adapt. It’s clear they’ve had a month and a half of very good results. They’re winning, and I hope they continue like this until the end.”