EuroBasket Women: Let’s dream about advancing! – Norbert Székely

– We are participating again at the European Championship. How would you sum up the six matches leading up to it?
– It has been a complex and difficult two years with a lot of good moments that have built the team and pushed the women's game forward – said Norbert Székely, the head coach of the national team. – The last game didn't go as we would have liked; we performed well below our potential but participation in the European Championship is never for free. Basically, we are happy and satisfied that we have achieved what we set out to do, the team is constantly improving and competing with the best. It is true that there are weak points and weak days, but we are trying to improve.

– One of the key players played one of the worst games of her life against Romania, the substitute scored important points, while the team captain was a true leader. How did the head coach experience the strange psychology of the encounter?
– I'm sure we'll talk about it a lot. The head coach was out of his depth in this situation, it's impossible to prepare properly for such a key match in three or four training sessions in this precision sport, where team spirit, knowledge of each other and tactics play a huge role. The stakes were high, it took the strength of mind, and there were also those who couldn't cope. It must have been very difficult, I have never seen anything like it, even though I have been coaching for a very long time. One thing I can point out is the girls fought and gave their all which helped. One time José Mourinho was asked what he was doing in the first half of the first half, and he said he was watching how the tactics were working out. In the second half, he's wondering what to say at the break to make things better. And what does he do after the break? He prays. That's what I was trying to do, and also try to make as few mistakes as possible, and luckily, we found one or two players who made the right decision at the right moment.

– What lessons did you learn from the clash?
– It's an amazing twist of fate that after losing a game in Spain, I felt we could beat anyone, and now after a winning game, I feel we can lose to anyone. I have to mention Alíz Varga, who was the same against Romania as Veronika Kányási was at home to Spain. I am glad that the staff is able and willing to make certain decisions in brutal situations. It's good that a person or two can step forward, it's always a dog's duty for us to find them.

– What do you think your team can do within the best of Europe?
– Related to my previous answer, everything and nothing. The Serbian, Belgian, Spanish and French teams are much better than us, but we have a realistic chance of winning against the others. Not only do we not go into the matches with our hands up, but we try to show a form and unity that will allow us to win matches. Let's dream about progressing from the group without knowing who we are playing with. In the qualifying tournament, the team showed several of its faces, we are working on showing the best of them at the European Championship, and for that, we will need psychological analysis.

– Where would you position the team compared to the seventh-placed team in the 2019 European Championship?
– I don't know if you can compare the two... In this qualifying series, we played four out of six games without Betti Határ, but we found Virág Kiss, Alíz Varga, Vera Kányási, and so on. Réka Dombai is also starting to settle in, and then there's Melinda Miklós. This is a completely different team, there were more experienced players in the previous team, so now we have to give the squad a different look.

– What kind of preparation method can be expected before the tournament in June?
– We are starting practice on May 1, the repertoire will be similar to the previous ones, but we will also add something new: we plan to play six to eight matches over the thirty-nine days. At the European Championships, team play is much more expected than it was now, we have to deal with certain situations, which requires a lot of thinking.

– Everyone is now wondering whether Bernadett Határ and Dorka Juhász will join the squad ahead of the European Championships. Are you optimistic regarding this?
– Yes, absolutely. I haven't spoken to either of them since Sunday's match and I won't for a week because I'm going on holiday abroad with my family, including a Spanish women's league match. I'm going to talk to all the players I can think of, and we'll work out who we can count on, when and how, and what's best for the Hungarian national team. Some players have done very significant work in recent matches and have made a lot of progress like Goree Cyesha, Kiss Virág or Alíz Varga.