Champions League and Greek National Team, Theodoris VLACHOS tells us everything
Interview of Theodoris VLACHOS
Head coach of Olympiacos and Greek National Team
realized by France Water-Polo
On June 9, Olympiacos won its second Champions League (the first in 2002). After the interview with two very important players of the team, Ioannis FOUNTOULIS and Georgios DERVISIS (see the article: « Georgios DERVISIS and Ioannis FOUNTOULIS, new European champions, come back on their achievement« ), it is the turn coach, Théodoris VLACHOS to tell us about this title and the future of Olympiacos and the Greek National Team.
France Water-Polo : First of all, congratulations for your victory in Champions League. This is the second time the club won the competition. What was your feeling at the end of the game?
TV : Indeed in 2002 and this year Olympiacos won the top of Europe. Then was the start of a strong presence of Olympiacos in the coming years at the European waterpolo. This time it was a great success Not only for the Olympiacos but also for the Greek waterpolo. At the end of the game in Geneva, we felt like Greek God’s.
FWP : What speech did you make to your players before the Final?
TV : I have been working with most of my players over the last few years, we know each other very very good and I am very much talking to them during the year, in difficult times or after big wins. But this moment was unique and particular. I did not want to talk to them about the game regularly and give them the usual instructions. I tried with two words to emphasize how much important was that final for their whole life and for their athletic career.
FWP : A lot of people saw Pro Recco as the favorite of this Final 8. In your opinion, in which area have you been stronger than Italians?
TV : Recco was the big favorite for the trophy since the beginning of the year, and even bigger because Recco was fighting at home. We were aiming to get to the final in Genoa and to claim the trophy more ripe and more correct than we did in 2016 in Budapest. That is how it was done. We presented a team with homogeneity with a mature game with passion in our game and very good quality. We played without pressure in the final and we managed to transfer it to the opponent. Having won the trophy at the home of such a big club as Reco, this makes our success even bigger.
FWP : We have seen that the Canadian of Marseille, Nicolas CONSTANTIN BICARI signed to your club next season. What will be the Olympiacos in September? Are you going to keep the same base?
TV : With Nicholas Bikari, we have agreed to work next year and are typically missing to complete this move from Marseil to Olympiacos. He is an athlete who we believe can become part of our game and our team to help us the next year in achieving our goals.
FWP : Let’s come to the Greek national team that you train as well. What are your chances for the next European Championship?
TV : The National Team of Greece has succeeded in winning the bronze medal at the World Championship in Kazan, being the elite of the world waterpolo. Every year and before each big event we start from zero and try to get past ourselves to bring another big success for Greece. The competition is great and the good teams we have to overcome are enough. It does not fit us to ask for much before big fights. We try to put new blood on the team and continue to be in the top teams.
FWP : Several nations have naturalized players to strengthen their workforce. It was the case in Spain with PERRONE and FAMERA, in Italy with ECHENIQUE and MOLINA … What do you think about these naturalisations? Have you thought to do it with Greece?
TV : I will start from the end and I want to say that we have no intention of doing a foreign athlete Greek but also we do not want it. In Greece, the law is too hard for such a change. But as soon as Fina gives the right to all countries to make use of this decision, the next years, it will be something normal for those countries who need to change the athlete’s nationality. We will continue to try with the Greek athletes to have the best possible results, and let us occasionally have gaps and voids.
FWP : We usually finish our interviews with the question « really stupid »: Is there a French player that you find interesting and that you would like to see in your team?
TV : Over the past 3 years, we have been in contact with two good French athletes to come to Olympiakos. But something was missing from what we wanted both sides and eventually we did not manage to bring a Frenchman to the Olympiacos. But I do not want to mention their names. There are now, as in the past, good athletes in France.
