Ettore Messina: One day the problem will be solved in a sensible way

Olimpia Milano coach Ettore Messina gave a very long interview to Discovery. A first passage was on the European calendar.

“Many have spoken about it, Luca Banchi and other coaches. If we go on like this, it reminds me of a film I saw when I was a kid called ‘They Shoot Horses, Don’t They?s’. It told a story in the American Midwest. There was a dance hall where they had dance competitions, couples danced until they were exhausted. Those who resisted won. We do a bit of the same thing”.

“These guys play 80-90 games. Then most of them go on to play for the national team in the summer. The federations rightly want their slots, the national leagues want their slots, the EuroLeague wants its slots. If they all want their places, the players will be the ones who don’t have a place at the end of the day.

“The number of injuries has increased exponentially. I want to add an aspect. This is the first year, with the exception of the summer when Covidh was held, in which teams have finally had the opportunity to prepare with all their players, as the Olympics end in mid-August.

“In the past, you built up big squads, spent a lot of money and then in September some players were still away. So you can’t prepare with the whole team. One day the problem will be solved in a sensible way. Everyone will have to give up something and we will have a more balanced situation. In other words, fewer injuries, fewer tired players and an important product in any competition.