Gianmarco Pozzecco is a little crazy, according to the Italian national basketball team about the coach. And after his team creates the biggest sensation of the current European Championship, Pozzecco provides impressive, inspiring proof of it.
Tears welled up in his eyes, Gianmarco Pozzecco wiped them from his face, but he wasn't ashamed as he made his big exit. After all, the coach had previously played through the entire range of feelings, very Italian. Each of his protégés got a kiss on the cheek, and he called everyone over before he had to leave the basketball stage. Big cinema in Berlin.
What happened? In the middle of the third quarter of the European Championship round of 16 against gold candidate Serbia, Pozzecco got the second technical foul after another emotional outburst on the sidelines. This is tantamount to being expelled, the coach, who was completely exhausted by the game, had to leave the interior and - after the touching farewell scenes - trotted towards the catacombs, his assistant took over. And Pozzecco, who watched the rest of the game in the belly of the arena, saw on the screen how his team suddenly surpassed themselves shortly after he had roused them with his performance. Italy duped the favorite around NBA MVP Nikola Jokic in the final quarter and surprisingly won 94:86.
And now Pozzecco was completely gone. "It wasn't twelve players, it was twelve lions and they shook the world tonight," said the 49-year-old from Gorizia. He gave the players his credit card, "they can do whatever they want". Because it was "one of the most beautiful games in the history of the national team," said Pozzecco, "we have a big heart, a pinch of madness and a lot of compactness".
That's quite true, as Pozzecco made for another memorable episode on his return, and video of the scene went viral. After the game was over, the head coach jumped onto Giannis Antetokounmpo in the dressing room, screaming, wrapping his arms and legs around the Greek superstar, who was wearing headphones and didn't know what hit him. "I love you," said Pozzecco. Of course, the NBA giant also got a kiss.
And the trainer with a pinch of madness? Hearts also fly to him: "We all love him. We have to control his emotions a little," commented point guard Marco Spissu. The 49-year-old ex-professional is so crazy that he still prefers to play himself. On the official Twitter account of the basketball championship, they demand that the video of the hug between Pozzecco and Antetokounmpo be made the "most viral post of the EuroBasket 2022".
