MADRID, 2 Jun. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Real Madrid coach, Chus Mateo, celebrated the passage to the final of the Endesa League Playoff after beating Barça (92-95) at the Palau Blaugrana in the third semi-final match, and highlighted the “winning character” and the “pride” of his team to go on the fast track to that final, the fourth of the season.
“When Barcelona took the lead we were smart and took advantage of the pressure that the Barcelona players were going to feel, due to the possibility of being left out. I am happy for the series, for mentally recovering from Sunday a week ago (Final 4 loss). The team is proud and has character and we have shown it,” he said at a press conference.
For Mateo, his team has had a good series and was superior in all three games. “We played a good series, against Barcelona we played three good games. Today we also played a good, intelligent game, we endured the difficult moment,” he acknowledged.
“I am very happy, reaching the finals gives you the option of being champion and you have the option to win. Playing finals in the Euroleague, Copa del Rey, Super Cup and now the League is not easy at all with the calendar we have and rivals from the entity of the Barça, which has made things difficult for us,” he said.
He also highlighted Barça’s attitude in this third match, first at the Palau Blaugrana. “Barcelona is a team with character, that fights and fights and that did not want to be left out of the final, which many predicted as the Madrid-Barcelona final and along the way we have been given the destiny of the semi-finals. It is difficult to defeat Barcelona, who wanted to fight and had pride and put us in trouble. It was foreseeable that they were going to fight until the end and that’s what happened,” he commented.
But he emphasized the character of his team. “We have a winning character and we have played good games. In all of them we have had scoring capacity, with very high figures. We are used to it and maintaining the rhythm is not easy but I am happy with how we have arrived despite 83 games in one season,” he celebrated.