THE Mario Hezonia talked about the contacts she had with him Panathinaikos in the summer for the renewal of his contract. The Croatian forward gave his own view of what happened a few months ago and left the Greens, stressing that he never refused the offer made to him.
Mario Hezonia, who is now a player of Unics Kazan, speaking to a Lithuanian journalist, claimed that he did not feel a priority of the new Panathinaikos team and that basically everything went wrong in the negotiations.
Analytically:
– For the timeline of his transfer to Panathinaikos: “I was called by Panathinaikos in February. And I thought “who am I to say no to Panathinaikos?”. It is my favorite team. It was a childhood dream to compete there. I would meet Diamantidis and Albertis. It was fantastic. I immediately said “I am coming. I do not care about money, I will come tomorrow “. I am grateful for what I experienced. It’s like my family. It was the best thing I did to myself. I can describe it as a gift to myself. I told them thank you about 100 times and I will keep telling them in my life “.
– For the negotiations that took place in the summer with Panathinaikos: “Sk @ t @ happen sometimes. These are different times in Greece. You can not play games with me. I do not have an agenda. I talked to them alone. I came in like a mobster and said “what do you want us to do?”. It was about April-May. I had my financial advisor with me.
I told them I wanted to stay here, I did not want to go anywhere else. When I left the United States to go to Greece in February, I asked my financial advisor if he was sure of this step. As soon as I set foot in Greece, no one will be able to take me from there. I was so serious. In the summer there was confusion. The whole issue was lost in the negotiations and contracts in Europe. But they can not play games with me. Managerial and such. Mitoglou was interested in many teams in Europe, which is why they initially focused on Panathinaikos. Then they wanted to sign Papapetrou. And then they talked to me. They took a different direction. They got new players and a new coach. They did not ask us about the coach. Did they ask the leader (s.s. Papapetrou) about the coach? I could not call Papapetrou to ask him. We are players. They could let us know. They are a serious team. We were the leaders of this group.
I have 15 thousand fans with me, who are extremely passionate about the team. If I say something, he is with me. They are all like my brothers. I met them often. Before and after the games. I was trying to calm them down and tell them that they do not need to come to training after a defeat. They love their team so much. And I respect them for that. I was the bridge between the fans and the team. I think they panicked a bit (including the leaders of Panathinaikos) this summer because they had to build a good team. I was confused too. I never told them “no”. I told my financial advisor to arrange it. I did not have the courage to say “no” to this team. How can I say “no” to this group? I’ve been feeling bad since July. I called my whole family. To my grandmother, to my father. I called about 100 people to see what is best for my career. But I could not play games at this stage of my career. We were confused and lost. I do not know what will happen in the future. “I felt disappointed that I would not return to Greece.”
– For what went wrong in the negotiations with Panathinaikos“I told them to take Perry. I also talked to him. I knew him and told them that he is very good and will help us. Then they wanted to get another point guard, in front of Perry. Chaos. The issue was the order in which it all happened. You can not speak at the end of July. I had said that I would decide in August, but I had started to respond negatively to suggestions. The market moves like this. I answered negatively to European teams because I wanted to stay at Panathinaikos. If I mention the teams that made me proposals, it will be a disaster in Greece.
I have respect for Panathinaikos and I will not say anything against them. I will protect them to the maximum, but things did not go in the right order. I could say that I return unconditionally. I should think a little about my career. I could stay there for the next 10 years and fight for titles. I chose another path and we will see what happens. It was a crazy summer. Since Kalathis left, they have not lost their identity precisely because this team always has an identity and is the best of all time in Europe. Ever since Dimitris Diamantidis left, they have somewhat lost their identity. Kalathis is a great player, but he played with all these legends next to him. Σ
I come to Mitoglou and Papapetrou. They had to decide. They are Greeks and we are dealing with Panathinaikos. I do not want to overtake Papapetrou and Mitoglou. Dinos had to decide why he is at a stage in their career that needs to see what is best for him. I told Dino if he wanted to stay here and then go to the NBA. I do not know what will happen next. We did not know who the coach would be, who would stay. I do not know if I will stay, although I really want to. Or go to a Euroleague team that wants him a lot, improve and go further in the NBA. I suggested this to him because he has an agenda that is my friend. I told Papapetrou that I know it is his dream to play in the NBA, but to go to a team that has a good role. You can stay here, you are a leader.
There is nothing more important than being a captain at Panathinaikos. I told them openly that I wanted to stay. I shouted it in the locker room. I would have my house and my cars here. The order of things I told you went wrong. I did not talk much with coach Priftis. I did not know him. All I knew was that he worked at Unix. I took the responsibility. Then everything went wrong. I told the fans not to mess with the management. It was not their fault. I talked to the children of Gate 13 and told them that it was my fault. I told them that I hope to see you sometime in the future. “
The article Hezonia: “Panathinaikos was in a panic in the summer” published in NewsIT .