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"Going home to the hall and being an outsider. It will flood emotions" - Walla! sport

2021-09-06T10:13:23.031Z


The first holiday outside the house. The tank top that came up at the meal. And the game against Maccabi Tel Aviv. Exclusive: Yuval Sussman and Tamir Blatt talk about their new lives in Alba Berlin


"A few days ago, the photographer of Alba Berlin came to practice and documented the players in all kinds of situations," says Yuval Sussman.

"In one of them, he caught Tamir and me sitting together on the bench during a drinking break. Then he sent me the picture, and I said to Tamir: One day, when we stop playing basketball, we will lock up those memories and be proud and happy of the things we went through together."



"And that is exactly the point," adds Tamir Blatt.

"This is the first time we're both playing abroad, and going on a new adventure, which we didn't know before, and the fact that Yuval is here with me really helps.

It's like your brother playing with you on the team.

You are never alone, you have someone to unload and get help from, and with whom to talk about everything. "



Yuval Sussman and Tamir Blatt, Tamir Blatt and Yuval Sussman. Two of the future stars of Israeli basketball have already played together in the youth teams, as well as in the senior team, but in the last three years they have become rivals / friends, with one playing for Maccabi Tel Aviv and the other for Hapoel Jerusalem. But in sports reports, at least in the coming year, they will be constantly subordinated to each other. For the first time in 16 years, two players from the country will be collaborating with a Euroleague team from abroad, and embarking on a new adventure in their lives. After playing in the Champions League.



The two live eight minutes apart. Tonight (Monday) they will have a holiday away from home and with most of the family. "It will be special, and of course we will celebrate Rosh Hashanah together, properly, with an apple and honey and everything." Say the two basketball players in a special interview from Berlin to Walla! Sports.



- I mean, are you really cooking a holiday meal?



"Let's not exaggerate," laughs Blatt.

"My mom and sister are here, and they will help us organize what needs to be done. If I had to prepare the meal, we would have to settle for egg yolk toast. At most I would put some salmon in the oven."

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"One day, when we stop playing basketball, we will cherish those memories and be proud and happy of the things we went through together."

Tamir Blatt and Yuval Sussman in Alba Berlin uniforms (Photo: Walla !, Tilo Wiedensohler)

They brought the nicknames from Israel to Germany with them: the members of the team are already calling Blat TB, as it was in Jerusalem, and Sussman became Zus, as in his days at Maccabi. "At first, one of the assistant coaches forgot how to pronounce my name, and shouted at me 'Joe!', And then everyone got confused about me," Yuval reveals.



- Do you already feel significant differences in life in Germany compared to those in Israel?



Blatt: "Besides the sky is gray?" ...



Sussman: "At home, I always waited for the family meal on Fridays, and now it does not happen, and it is missing."



Blatt: "That's right. I feel the significant difference on Fridays and Saturdays, that here they are just another day."



Sussman: "And every day, you feel the difference the first second you get on the road. No one honks, unless something really extreme happens, and when there is a limit of 30 km / h, no one passes the 30. Anyway, everything here is calm ... you see people walking down the street,And it seems that they are not in a hurry to get anywhere. "



Blatt: "Those who control the roads are the cyclists."



Sussman: "Yeah, that's a segment. There are more custom riders here. On every city road they have their own lane and traffic light, and they have a lot of rights. Before every turn you have to make sure no one cuts you at the last minute."



- So maybe you should consider moving from a vehicle to a bicycle?



"No, no. Any little thing that happens could expose you to injury," they agree.

Sussman: "At home, I always waited for the family meal on Fridays, and now it's missing."

Blatt: "Here Saturday is just another day."

In their days as rivals in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv (Photo: Kobi Eliyahu)

Even before he left Israel, Sussman began learning German ("It's a difficult language, especially when it comes to grammar, but in the last week I've neglected my studies a bit because of the training load"). Blatt testifies that "it is very easy to get by here, because everyone speaks English, unlike other cities in Germany. And along the way, we start teaching the group members to speak some Hebrew."



- What did you teach and who?



Sussman: "Luis Olinda is a guy on the kippak, and he has a bit of an Israeli character ... he keeps asking and wants to know. Luke Sikma knew how to say 'congratulations' even after we joined, and we taught him to say good morning and good afternoon. He also loves Israeli food. And the Middle East. "



Blatt: "You could say he just loves food" ...



but with all due respect to life in Berlin, the two moved to Germany to play basketball, and their main course will arrive on September 30, when they go through their baptism of fire in an away game against Barcelona in the opening round of the Euroleague.



- How different is it to be in a foreign player's slot compared to what you knew as a local?



Blatt: "I do not feel like a stranger, I am not unusual. It is fun. You come here, and immediately you are given the feeling that everyone is equal and that you are part of a group."



Sussman: "I thought I would feel different, but in the meantime it's not like that for me either. I guess it will come later. At the moment I am mainly trying to adapt to the method and training."



- Have you already taken out of the system this matter that your Spanish coach calls Israel Gonzalez?



"It's better for articles in the country," Sussman says.



Blatt: "I don't think we even mentioned it in conversations with him."



Sussman: "Israel is a very common name in Spain, and it's not that it has any connection to our country."



- When you joined Alba, it was not yet clear if the legendary Aito Garcia Rances would continue to coach her. Were you disappointed when he announced his retirement?



Blatt: "Aito is a legend in itself, but Israel has worked with him for many years and learned a lot from him, and he also brings with him a lot of knowledge of his own."

"I don't know how the fans will react, but believe they know I put my body and heart on the pitch at any given moment."

Maccabi Tel Aviv fans (Photo: Udi Citiat)

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- Tamir, after three years as the landlord in Jerusalem, will have to get used to a slightly different role, with this season's player in Germany Jalin Smith sitting in your box.



"They did not talk to me in advance about how I would play and how many minutes. They all come from the same position, and in every game something different can happen. In the end there is a method and there is a team here. I am in the process of learning, and it is very different I believe everything will be fine. "



- And Yuval, you have the opposite situation. Much has been said and written about your performance at Maccabi in the last two years, which is why you actually left. Do you expect change?



"I have not had personal conversations, nor have I been asked to do one way or another. We are still in the introductory phase, starting to connect, and in time we will know what everyone knows to do. In Alba there is not one superstar above everyone, They come with a very big hunger. "



Even before they got into sportswear, the two Israelis had already had to make a decision regarding their personal and commercial branding. "My name is not just Jubilee," Sussman explains. "I was born on May 12, 1998, two days before the date of Israel's 50th Independence Day, and I always wore the number 50. But when I signed with Alba, I knew this jersey was occupied by Ben Lamers. I tried my luck, I sat with the family and my agent Nadav Moore, and together we drafted a message I sent him "...



- What did you write to him?



"I explained to him what that number means to me, and why I've been wearing it since the day I started playing basketball, and that if he doesn't have some special emotional connection to it, I'd be happy if we could make that substitution."



- And how did Lamers react?



"He said he was number 21 in Texas because he admires Tim Duncan, and when he got to Alba he switched to 50 because of David Robinson, so he has no ancient history with this jersey, and he agrees to give it to me for fun. I got excited, and replied that our first meal together - About me ".



- Tamir, your original tank top, 6, may be a little sensitive to a Jew in Germany ...



"Yes, huh?", Laughs Blatt.

"I did not even try to keep it, and not for the reason you mentioned. Malta Delau grew up here from the age of 10 and it is clear that the right is reserved for him. Because I was born on May 4, I went to 45, which is my new number. "...

"Obviously it picks you up when you ask for an autograph or a photo, but it's nice that there is also this industrial quiet and you can concentrate on basketball." Sussman and Blatt on the Israeli national team (Photo: Kobi Eliyahu)

- In January, you will return to Israel, and stay with Alba at Maccabi Tel Aviv. Yuval, do you already imagine the reception that the fans will prepare for you as an opponent?



"The truth is that I have no idea what it will be like. I do not know how the fans see the situation I am in now, but I believe they know that when I played for Maccabi, I put my body and heart on the field at any given moment. "And it doesn't belong, it will be different, and I will have thoughts and feelings. I also want to know how I will feel, but I will have to put it aside."



Blatt: "The truth is that for me, even though I did not play for Maccabi, it will probably be different from any other game. But I do not think I will get too excited. I played many times against Maccabi, even in front of 11,000 spectators like in the Euroleague games."



- In recent years you have been the anchor of the Israeli team, but it seems that now you will have a hard time getting to the games during the season, two of which will be against Germany.



Blatt: "I always want to be part of the team, and contribute as much as I can. I'm sure the guys will continue the process we started and play well, and with the help of the name we will join them in the summer for the European Championships."



Sussman: "It sucks not to show up when you're called. The team always has friends you know and love, and it's always a fun experience."



- When you walk the streets of Berlin, do you already recognize yourself?



Sussman: "Listen, it's 180 degrees different from what's happening in the country. We told group members, not in a haughty section, that in Israel we can not go outside without being asked for a picture, even if we are in the middle of a meal at a restaurant."



Blatt: "Not to mention the looks" ...



Sussman: "I can say that during the month I was here, it only happened once that a boy asked me to take a picture with me. I went with three guys from the team, and he saw some tall people walking around together and turned to us. In Berlin live so many people, and basketball is not exactly the sport Number 1, so the vast majority just don't know us. "



- Do you not miss the expressions of admiration?



Blatt: "I do not lack it. I actually like the silence and anonymity."



Sussman: "Obviously it picks you up when you ask for a signature or a photo, but it's nice to have that industrial quiet as well and you can concentrate on basketball."



- Have you already checked the price of the Milky Way in Berlin?



Blatt: "No, but the prices here are really, really cheap."



Sussman: "I'm a big guy, and sometimes I need two meals a week. When I go here to restaurants, I pay no more than 20 euros, and I'm blown away. In Israel I would pay double."

Source: walla

All sports articles on 2021-09-06

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