Maccabi FOX Tel Aviv coach Neven Spahija celebrated a win last night against Valencia, but despite that, something still bothered him.
The Israeli side might have won 94-91 but conceding the latter amount bothered the 55-year-old Croatian who was unhappy with his side’s defensive effort.
“I’m really unhappy with our defence,” Spahija said following the win. “I think it’s the first time this year we allowed 91 points. I don’t like it, but I can’t complain. This is the EuroLeague; every win is important, even if it’s 94-91. We cannot win all the time the way we want. The opponent also prepares something.”
The win lifted Maccabi into fourth spot in the EuroLeague standings and just 11 games into the season, they are just three wins away from matching their winning mark from the last term when they desperately under-performed to finish third from bottom.
“There is no easy game in this league,” Spahija admits.
“Many opponents and preparation. It was not my favourite win, as we allowed fourteen three-pointers, 91 points but Valencia played really well-disciplined basketball. They are the champions of Spain and a really good team. It is difficult to stop us on the open court and when we defend.”
