The blue and whites of Fehérvár easily reached the semi-finals by sweeping Sopron, and in all three matches they were better than the Westerners, who were fighting well. However, Zalakerámia ZTE fought hard against Debrecen’s team, in the mid-week clash that decided everything, the team from the western border in vain led by 17 points, 55-38, in the end they had to be very nervous. Because with a one-point home advantage, five seconds before the final whistle, the Eastern team brought the ball and could throw, but the key figure, usually confident – but in this match, Bálint Mócsán made a bad decision, the ball released from a forced position bounced off the ring. ZTE won 75-74, so they can look forward to the semi-finals starting on Saturday. Arconic-Alba Fehérvár, the former team of Matthias Zollner, will start its performance against Szolnok in the quarter-finals, at home.
Photo: László Horog / FMH
Zollner took over the management of Fehérvár from the Slovenian Dejan Mihevc in November 2021, and was active in the crowning city until February of last year. Then he did not work for a year. On January 29, Zete announced that the job of the fired Czech coach, Lubomir Ruzicka, was over, and that the German manager would replace him on the bench. The decision turned out to be a very good one, the new manager tidied up the dressing room, they started to move up, they had a chance to get the third place in the regular season. It was revealed earlier – a month and a half before the end of the regular season – that Falco and Alba, who left the field, finished in the first two places, so they can expect the playoffs from the best position, but there was a lot of scrambling behind them. In the last derby, ZTE lost by one point to Budapesti Honvéd, the surprise team of the season, and Olaj also won at home, so the Alföldi team finished in 3rd position, while the 4th-placed Zala team battled with Debrecen to reach the top four. ZTE advanced with a score of 3-2 in a heated meeting.
– We deserved to reach the top four, we performed well in all five matches, we also had a chance to succeed in Debrecen, in both away matches. In the fifth, all-deciding meeting, the support of the fans was important, they created a great atmosphere, I really hope we will play many more similar matches together, and we can be happy at the end. In the last derby against Hajdúságy, we played very good basketball for 34 minutes, our will prevailed, we led by almost twenty points, but after that we seemed to be scared of the opportunity, made bad decisions, made too many mistakes, which was not typical of us before. We let the opponent get close to us. But the point is that we won the decisive match. In the end, we were calmer, we got rebounds, good defense decided in our favor. I wish Debrecen the best of luck in the 5-8. to duels for place, and we will move on.
When I ask the German manager about the period in Fehérvár, he says that he has fond memories of that year and a half.
– At the end of the first season, we won bronze medals, with a particularly good game. I took over the team in a difficult situation, then we went uphill, and finally finished on the podium. We parted ways last February, I returned to my family, we live near Munich, I was waiting for the right offer. I had opportunities, but I didn’t accept anything, I wanted to sign for a team whose goals I can perfectly identify with. ZTE was like that, we agreed quickly. After working for a year and a half in Körmen between 2018 and 2022, and then in Fehérvár, I can say that I know the Hungarian championship. This obviously played a role when the people from Egerszeg contacted me. With Körmend, we won silver medals, and we were clearly considered medal contenders in the spring of 2020, however, after the regular season, the playoffs did not start due to the pandemic.
The trainer keeps in touch with the Fehérvárs, he spoke with his former assistant Dániel Kertész often, almost weekly, on the phone during the year he spent in Germany, and now that he is in Hungary again, these conversations have become even more frequent. A month ago, they won the championship in Zala, and they were happy to greet each other with Elejandro Zubillaga, who managed the Fehérvárs as head coach after Zollner’s departure, with whom Zollner also worked for a year and a half at Gáz utca.
– We sometimes communicate with the president, Imre Balássi, on the Internet, and my relationship with him has remained excellent. A month ago, we hosted Fehérvár at home, and we won 89-83 in a big game. That match was very important for us, but not for the guests. After the whistle, I ran into Balássi in the dressing room corridor, we talked for a few minutes, in a great mood. Especially mine was better, because my team won. I told the first man of Alba, I would be most happy if we met in the final, maybe I don’t need to say, I want an Alba-ZTE final. This can happen, however, the chance for our duel is Szombathely, which has won gold medals in recent years, has a very strong player base, and is confidently winning the regular season. Of course, we will do our best, I think my team is capable of surprises, we have already played big matches, won surprising victories this season. Fehérvár has an easier task in that it starts at home, and if a fifth game is needed, it can end the match at home.
The trainer said that he feels great in Zala, and is already negotiating with the managers about the continuation.
– Of course, I am now concentrating on the semi-finals. I feel good here, I was happy to return to Hungary. When I arrived at the beginning of February, victories followed, which set the tone for a calm continuation. After the success against Fehérvár, my family, my wife and two children came to visit me, which was also important. The results also show that I made a good decision when I signed with ZTE. I haven’t been to Fehérvár in the last year, I also talked to the president about this, if that’s the case, we’ll have a drink in the city center. This hardly happens these days because we play three games a week in the playoffs, playing on the same match days. I hope we will meet the Fehérvárs again soon, and not during the battles for the bronze medal.
2024-04-26 11:14:24