Vincent Collet (coach of the France team, beaten by Spain in the Euro final) “Spain played very well, they did everything they intended to do, things that we anticipated but couldn’t prevent. We knew they would be very aggressive against Thomas (Hurtel) and Evan (Fournier). We knew they would play long possessions in attack to wear us down and they succeeded: our defensive pressure was not like Friday. We waited 17 minutes to put this pressure back on. We did not give ourselves the weapons to change the fate of this match. »
Sergio Scariolo (coach of the Spanish team, quadruple European champion): “We arrived in this Euro being eighth in the predictions for victory (power rankings). We managed to climb to the top, against an opponent who has an incredible team, full of NBA and Euroleague players. As a coach, I’m so happy because we played extremely well, both in attack and in defence. We made a lot of assists (24), we tied the rebound against a much bigger team and had the patience to get through the tough times. »
Andrew Albicy (leader of the French team) “They were in place and we didn’t know how to respond in the right way. When we came back (49-46, 23rd), I thought that we had changed, that we understood that we were in the final and that we had to give everything, be more aggressive in defense. But after the time-out, we got a release and they punished us right away…”
Guerschon Yabusele (strong winger of the France team) “I feel like it’s becoming a habit to lose in the final, that’s what drives me crazy. We had a very good team, it was a good match-up (opponent). Every final, it’s the same disappointment when I lose. We will see the points on which we will have to progress. But here, I don’t think too much about the match or the tactics, I just think about spending time with my family and preparing for the coming season. »