Z. Obradovic: 'Many things to fix – We must give everything to repay the supporters' support'

Numbers don't lie – only sources know how to embellish. The 78–56 win over AEK at the 2nd International Tournament in Rhodes is the only quantifiable figure in a context where the entire team has just had 3–4 practices together. I don't look at the future; I read the past faster than others. And the past of Željko Obradović says this preseason win means nothing – except confirming a defensive philosophy being reinstalled. Panathinaikos just secured their first win under Obradović after his return to the bench. But read the 66-year-old legend's comments carefully: 'This is a typical preparation game', 'many things to fix'. This is not the language of a satisfied man. This is the language of someone installing a system, someone who knows his team has only touched the ball together for a few sessions. The blind spot the official story misses: the gap between full-roster availability and the group with only '3–4 practices' suggests key pieces (likely national-team returnees or recent signings) are not yet integrated. This game is closer to a summer scrimmage than a complete system showcase. The most expensive – and cheapest – inside source in V.League taught me: don't ask who's coming; ask why they're leaving. Here, the right question is: why does Obradović emphasize 'many differences from my first tenure'? Because he knows the environment has changed, and this return is not a replica of the past. Look at the financial picture: the EuroLeague has no salary cap, no luxury tax. Spending ambition is measured by ownership willingness. Appointing a coach with 9 EuroLeague titles – described as 'the most decorated in history' – is a capital-level investment, not a player transaction. That says one thing: Panathinaikos is betting on reputation and immediate credibility, not on a long-term rebuilding project. FFP doesn't kill football; it unmasks those pretending to be rich. In European basketball, there's no FFP, but there is something else: expectation. Obradović is buying time with 'typical preparation game' language. He's lowering expectations to shield the team from fan pressure – the same fans he promises to 'repay with full commitment'. A defaulted contract tells more than a hat-trick. A 22-point preseason win tells less than one coach's sentence. That sentence: 'we have a lot of work to do'. That's the real signal. The win is just noise. The question for you: are you reading the result or the process? If you only look at the scoreline, you miss the entire story. If you look at how Obradović speaks about his team, you'll see a general preparing for a long war, not a short battle.