The Madrid team is chasing its 12th title, while the Greeks will try to win their fourth trophy, intended for the best team on the Old Continent.
Olympiacos was first after the regular season with a score of 26-12. Giorgos Bartosakos' team was convincing against Monaco in the playoffs with a score of 3-0, only to take the crown from Fenerbahce in the semifinals with a score of 79-61.
"Real has a very long history, the most titles in the Euroleague. They play hard, really strong. We must not underestimate anyone. We know that they will be very, very strong. We must have the same defensive game as yesterday and even better offense," Saša Vezenkov replied to RTCG's question about whether his team would have an advantage because Sergio Scariolo was left without his only remaining center, Usman Garuba.
Olympiacos will have great support from the stands.
"We know this is our chance. You never know when you will play the final again and you have to be ready. We are not looking at the other team because we do not want to burden our minds. We have to focus on our team and play 100 percent in defense and attack. We have great respect for Real Madrid and we have to give our all," Vezenkov added.
It is interesting that since the introduction of the single table format and regular season, no team with the best score has been crowned European champion.
Olympiacos has been waiting for the title for 13 years, and since then has lost three finals, the last one to Real Madrid in 2023.
On the other hand, Real was in third place at the end of the regular season (24-14), before defeating Hapoel Tel Aviv 3-1 in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, Sergio Scariol's team defeated Valencia 105:90.
However, they paid a high price for this triumph, as Usman Garuba joined the list of injured centers. Earlier, Valter Tavares and Alex Len were eliminated.
However, one of the best Real Madrid players in history, Sergio Lluís, doesn't want excuses.
"We are where we want to be. We have the opportunity to play another final and a great chance to continue winning and making history. We know it won't be easy, because we are playing against probably the best team in Europe this year, with really great players, but we will do our best to win. They have a great coach like Bartosos, but we just want to give our maximum, to play 100 percent and try to win. We would like Eddie, Alex and Usman to play tomorrow. But, you know, injuries are part of the game. We are Real Madrid and we don't look for excuses," Luy stressed ahead of the match.
This season, the score between the two teams is tied. Real Madrid won 89:77 in Madrid, Olympiacos responded at home 102:88.
As for the final matches, Real Madrid leads with 3:1 in wins. The Madrid team defeated their great rival in 1995 in Zaragoza (73:61), in 2015 on home soil (78:59), and in the aforementioned 2023 in Kaunas (79:78), thanks to a goal by Sergi Llull.
Olympiacos' only victory came in 2013 in London (100:88), when they were also led by coach Barcokas.
