Teller Report

The veteran returns before the important European Championship qualifiers

11/26/2020, 2:21:30 PM

On Friday and Sunday, key matches await when the Swedish basketball masters qualify for the European Championships in Istanbul. While several potential starting players are missing, veteran Thomas Massamba, 35, is back in the national team. - My role is to be a leader with experience that also creates for others, he says to SVT Sport.


Ahead of the second of a total of three European Championship qualifiers, Sweden is third in Group D after a loss against Croatia and a memorable landslide victory at home against Turkey in front of a record audience of 11,390 people in the Globe in February - just before the pandemic broke out.

Ludvig HÃ¥kanson was one of the team's most important players then.

Now he is missing after testing positive with symptoms for Covid-19 and Sweden will have to do without their point guard against the Netherlands on Friday and against Croatia on Sunday.

Back in the national team before the key matches, however, is Thomas Massamba.

The 35-year-old has by far the most routine in the squad with his 120 A international matches.

How big a break is it that HÃ¥kanson is missing?

- It is an incredibly big break.

He has started in these matches and played with great confidence.

But then it's someone else's turn to get up.

We are a team and we will play together as a team, says Thomas Massamba.

"Here to win"

How many points will you have with you from the weekend's two matches for you to be satisfied?

- We come here to win.

Our goal is to win as many matches as possible and to play as well as possible.

Hopefully we get home two wins.

The European Basketball Championship will be decided in 2022. After this weekend's qualifying round, a gathering remains in February.

Three out of four teams go to the championship.