Berlin (SID) – It is “Derby Week” in the EuroLeague, definitely misleading, but at least there is a German heavyweight fight in basketball. 700 spectators are allowed in the hall when master Alba Berlin meets Bayern Munich on Friday evening (8 p.m. / MagentaSport). It’s not a derby like the match between Panathinaikos Athens and Olympiacos Piraeus, which took place at the same time in Greece, but despite the 600 km distance, the clash between the only two Bundesliga clubs promises a lot of tension.
“This duel is a saga, it is now chapter one,” said the new Bayern coach Andrea Trinchieri, but did not want to overestimate the importance. Managing director Marko Pesic expects some insights from the second match day in the premier class: “This game is a first sign of our new duel with Alba.”
Bayern had just lost to the top Italian team Armani Milan at the start (79:81 a.m.), so much was not lacking to surprise. “I would be very happy if we showed the same physical pace again, against Milan it was almost play-off physics,” said Trinchieri: “We have to do that every week.”
Alba, who lost to Israel’s record champions Maccabi Tel Aviv (73:80) last week, has to improve. “We had a few good minutes in Tel Aviv, but we also had bad phases,” said coach Aito Garcia Reneses: “We hope that we can play better against Bayern, who played very well in their first encounter against Milan.”
A special evening awaits national player Maodo Lo, who moved from Munich to Berlin in the summer. “Maodo should dress warmly,” joked the new Bayern captain Nihad Djedovic. And Lo said: “It is of course a special game for me because I had two good years in Munich. The meeting gives both teams the chance to see where they are at the beginning of the season.”
