basketball
Trinchieri’s farewell to Bayern is sad
Coach Andrea Trinchieri will leave Bayern Munich. photo
© Angelika Warmuth/dpa
Andrea Trinchieri didn’t want to say goodbye with a semi-final defeat against Ulm. The Italian is leaving Bavaria after three turbulent years. In the Bundesliga, the permanent duel is interrupted.
In the midst of the noisy basketball party in Ulm, Bayern coach Andrea Trinchieri spoke his parting words. Just a few minutes after the bitter play-off in the semi-finals, the charismatic Italian, whose departure had been an open secret for months, had completed his three-year spell in Munich.
“That was my last game in my time as Bayern coach. It’s over, it was a great ride. I think this group deserved a title more,” said Trinchieri, who took over in the summer of 2020 and won two cups in total .
A championship final without cup winner Bayern and defending champion Alba Berlin, a Bundesliga without Trinchieri: New times seem to be dawning in German basketball. And after the 102:104 in the surprise finalist ratiopharm Ulm, the trainer said goodbye as one would expect from him: with self-criticism, but also with verbal attacks and strong imagery in the direction of the referees.
Anger about referees
“Some referees think they are the police: you park your car five centimeters over the line and they give you a ticket,” said Trinchieri. “But we’re not cars, it’s not about parking, it’s about two fighting teams.” The technical foul he conceded in the gripping overtime particularly rankled Trinchieri. “That’s the only thing I regret today. Grazie e arrivederci.”
The 54-year-old, who once wanted to “empty a pool full of red wine”, said goodbye with pride, but without the longed-for championship, which he won three times with Bamberg from 2015 to 2017. Managing director Marko Pesic said: “He never had his full squad available as planned before the season. I feel sorry for him in particular. He is a professional who sees basketball as a calling and not as a job.” In these playoffs, too, three top performers were missing in captain Vladimir Lucic, Othello Hunter and Augustine Rubit. Former Real Madrid coach Pablo Laso is set to follow Trinchieri in Munich.
Personnel upheaval at Bayern
The opponent also praised the outgoing coach. Ulm’s head coach Anton Gavel – active as a professional for Bamberg and Bayern – highlighted Bayern’s two Euroleague quarterfinals in the Trinchieri years and said: “It was also important for me as a coach to learn from someone like Andrea and to observe him .” Managing Director Pesic was also enthusiastic. “Andrea gave us his heart, he was always there 100 percent to ensure that we were successful.” He could “only say positive things”.
How big the personnel upheaval will be at the national Croesus cannot be foreseen. In Isaac Bonga, Niels Giffey, Andreas Obst, Elias Harris and Nick Weiler-Babb, numerous strong German players play in Munich. This summer, builder Justus Hollatz could follow, even if rumors are currently being denied. The people of Munich want to take another step towards the top of Europe in the summer of 2024, when they move from the smaller Audi Dome to the modern new SAP Garden arena in the Olympic Park. Honorary President Uli Hoeneß has already spoken of “a new era” that is imminent with the move.