Pablo Laso, former Real Madrid coach, has broken his silence to explain his version of his departure from the white club after 11 seasons. The club announced the dismissal of the coach two weeks ago based on medical reports that advised against him continuing to lead the team, but Laso has insisted that all the doctors who have treated him have not objected to him continuing to train. “The doctors who have treated me have told me that I am perfectly fine and I would have liked the club, if they had other information, to have communicated it to me. I don’t have the Real Madrid medical reports, I have mine. I don’t know if it’s a betrayal, but I’m going to trust what the doctors tell me. All my medical reports are personal”, declared the coach this Monday at the presentation of the fourth edition of his summer camp, the Pablo Laso Training Camp.
Laso has insisted that he is in perfect health and that he only thinks about training again, although at the moment, he has nothing planned for next season. “I want to train, it’s my life, but I’m going to look for a project that excites me and at the moment I don’t have it. The desire to train cannot weigh more than the illusion. I’m not going to train for training. What is clear is that almost all the teams now have a coach, but I hope that someone thinks of me and that I am excited about the project. I am looking for the same illusion that I had at Real Madrid. I don’t know if he will be in the Euroleague, in a regional league or in the NBA, even as an assistant”, stated the man from Vitoria, who does rule out the possibility of taking charge of the national team. “Right now they have a magnificent coach (Sergio Scariolo) and the Federation is doing an extraordinary job.”
For the coach, his break with Real Madrid is practically definitive. “They told me that they had some medical reports that said that it was very dangerous to continue training and that we would see, but the possibility of continuing at the club in another position was not assessed. At the moment they tell me that I am no longer going to be the coach, I don’t paint anything there, ”said the coach, although he leaves a door open. “Like the ad says, you can go home for Christmas. When you consider a place to be your home, you won’t want to come back and Madrid is my home, it’s my life and that won’t change no matter how much I coach another club”.
In no case does the coach think there may be sporting reasons for his departure. “We have won the league and reached the Euroleague final. I think the team has had a great season, but Madrid is the one who decides”, he pointed out, acknowledging that he could have put himself in charge of the team when he was discharged after the heart attack, but it was his decision to throw himself into a side. “I decided not to direct the last few games because I thought it was the best for the team, and it also turned out quite well. But I don’t see consistency that if I was fit to train, the reason for my departure was that I shouldn’t have done it. I don’t understand that, but I understand that Real Madrid do without me, they’re in the position”.
Laso has also pointed out that there have been issues with Real Madrid that have hurt him a lot. “If something happens to a family member, you want to find out directly from him, but part of my family found out through the media. My mother had to call my wife to tell her what had happened after seeing it on television”, said Laso, who affirms that he does not hold any grudge against the club and that what he leaves behind “are friends, not enemies”. , focusing on the farewell given to him by several of the players he has had under his command. “I am very proud of the reaction of the players because regardless of whether they value me as a coach, they value me as a person. Just like the people who stop me on the street, they give me the same pride as Luka Doncic or Edy Tavares. That people value you like this excites me ”, he thanked, without entering into assessing the appointment of his replacement on the bench, Chus Mateo, for whom he holds great affection. “If I don’t train Real Madrid, I don’t care who does,” he said.
Laso has insisted that he looks after his health first and would never put himself at risk. “The first one who would not let me train if it was dangerous would be my wife, who would give me a capon with every reason in the world”, he joked. Although he does not have a medical report that explicitly states that he can train without risk, Laso points out that there is no specific prescription for coaches. “There is a protocol for the players, but the coaches undergo medical examinations and then the clubs assess them”, explained the Vitorian. Laso rules out the option that Madrid had decided to leave him regardless of what the doctors said. “I don’t think so and all of that is conjecture. If we stay with the statement, they make it clear that their reasons are exclusively medical. I don’t think it’s a personal situation that they doubt me, I’ve never had that feeling, ”he declared.
With his sights set on the future, Laso points out that he continues to feel the ‘bug’ and does not believe that his medical situation is an impediment to finding a new team. “What hurts more, that (his heart problems) or losing 30 games in a row? But if they win 30 games in a row, the club can think about doing a medical examination, but they will be determined to sign the coach because he is very good” concluded Laso. In this way, his career guarantees his future: 22 titles, the second coach with the most trophies in the club’s history (tied with Lolo Sainz and five for Pedro Ferrándiz, who raised 27), as well as being the coach with the most games directed ( 860) and more victories achieved (659) in Madrid.
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