Between war and wins: Maccabi Tel Aviv’s Euroleague playoff push fueled by resilience

500 (17-16) for the first time this season, with five games remaining. Since the outbreak of the war with Iran at the end of February, the yellow-and-blue has moved its operations back to Belgrade, where it had spent most of its time since October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched a brutal attack on the Israeli communities in the Gaza periphery. Oded Katash’s squad moved back to playing in the friendly confines of Yad Eliyahu in December after the war with Hamas came to an end.

However, with the breakout of the latest conflict, Maccabi returned to Aleksandar Nikolić Hall to get ready for the final stretch run as it tries to punch its ticket to the postseason. Recently, Maccabi General Manager Claudio Coldebella spoke with Giuseppe Nigro of La Gazzetta dello Sport in Italy, sharing some of the successes he has experienced this season. Coldebella discussed dealing with another conflict that will challenge the club, working for a legendary team like Maccabi Tel Aviv, and, first and foremost, winning the Israel State Cup just prior to the outbreak of the most recent war.

“Winning the cup was spectacular, and with this one I’ve now won in four countries – every country where I’ve worked: in Italy as a player, in Greece with PAOK, and in Russia in the VTB League with UNICS Kazan. But capturing the cup also reminded me of something Messina said about his experience at Real Madrid – that when you win there, it’s more a relief than anything else. That was a bit my feeling too; before me, they had already won 46 cups.

After the victory, the president was already thinking about the league title. It’s a place with an incredible winning DNA. ” Claudio Coldebella, General Manager of Maccabi Tel Aviv B.