"Potanın Perileri" aim to start the 2025 European Championship Qualifiers with a win

The national team, which will host Slovakia in Kocaeli on Thursday, November 9, in its first match in Group F of the qualifiers, is continuing its preparations in the city.

Speaking at the media day event held at the İzmit Şehit Polis Recep Topaloğlu Sports Hall, where the match will be played, head coach Ekrem Memnun said that their primary goal in the group, which they want to finish in first place, is to win the match against Slovakia.

Stating that mid-season window matches are a difficult process for national teams and clubs, Memnun expressed that he is very pleased with the players' concentration as of now.

Reminding that they were defeated by Slovakia in the last match they played, the A National Women's Basketball Team Head Coach said, "They are a country with a very deep-rooted basketball culture. In my opinion, they are a country that is respected in European basketball, even if they are valued below their worth. They have very quick and fast players. They play a style of basketball that is a bit contrary to ours."

Emphasizing that they know the opposing team very well and that it will not be an easy match, Memnun continued:

"We prepared by highlighting the areas where we are good and trying to hide the areas where we are not. We will play for only one result. We are regulars in this tournament. We have been in all the recent European championships. We want to be there again. For this, we will play to win the home match against Slovakia, absolutely and definitely."

Memnun stated that the İzmit audience has a great interest in women's basketball and invited all the people of İzmit to the match they will play on Thursday to support the national team.

Tilbe Şenyürek: I trust the team's potential

National basketball player Tilbe Şenyürek said, "Slovakia was the last opponent we faced in the 2023 European Championship, which went poorly due to misfortunes. This match is a rematch of that encounter. This situation makes us even more ambitious."

Emphasizing that they could not qualify for the World Championship and the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, and that they are working to pass the qualifying matches without any slip-ups after the unsuccessful results, Tilbe said, "There are very serious fans in İzmit. With their support, we hope to start with a victory."

Pointing out that Slovakia is their strongest opponent in the group, but that this does not mean they underestimate the other teams, Tilbe Şenyürek noted the following:

"I don't think our group is extremely difficult compared to other groups, but after the European Championship where we performed poorly, I don't think we are in a position to pick and choose opponents. I trust my teammates, I trust the team's potential. Misfortunes and a lot of reasons cause us to fail these tests in some way. Now, hopefully, we want to get up from where we fell, and as the women's national basketball team that misses its old days, we want to show the basketball we miss in these qualifying matches and subsequently in the championship."

Another national basketball player, Şerife Alperi Onar, stated that the whole team is ready because they came to the national team while the season is ongoing, and that they spent the preparation process very efficiently.

Touching upon the fact that playing the Slovakia match in İzmit is a driving force, Şerife Alperi Onar commented, "We played the Poland match here two years ago. The atmosphere in İzmit was really beautiful. I think it will be the same this year."

News Source: 12punto