Olimpia Milano, Thoughts on Peppe Poeta: A Surprising Possibility Emerges
Three consecutive losses—two in the EuroLeague interspersed with one in the league in Verona—are starting to take their toll at Olimpia Milano, especially since they come at a point in the season when the red-and-white club had hoped to have already established a clear identity. The loss in Belgrade against Maccabi Tel Aviv has further turned the spotlight on the Milanese team and on Peppe Poeta’s work; in his postgame comments, he made no secret of the current difficulties and, according to reports in *La Repubblica*, is reportedly at risk of being fired.
Poeta’s position, therefore, is far from secure. Management is intent on supporting the coach, but the need to quickly turn things around is leading to deeper reflection. In this scenario, a possibility is also emerging that, until a few weeks ago, would have seemed hard to imagine. Among the names linked to a potential succession is that of Ioannis Sfairopoulos, a Greek coach with extensive international experience who recently concluded his stint on the bench at Red Star Belgrade.
Born in 1967, Sfairopoulos has won two Greek titles with Olympiacos, three in Israel (plus a national cup and a league cup) with Maccabi Tel Aviv, and an Adriatic League title with Red Star, with whom he also won two editions of the Serbian Cup. The Greek coach has also coached PAOK, Kolossos Rhodes, and Panionios, in addition to serving as an assistant coach for the Greek national team and CSKA Moscow.
Returning to Poeta, he spoke openly about a rebuilding process that is still incomplete, admitting that it is taking longer than expected to bring the new group together. These words reflect realism, but at the same time paint a picture of a delicate situation for a club accustomed to pursuing ambitious goals both in the league and on the European stage.
The loss to Maccabi once again highlighted some issues that have already surfaced in recent weeks: Milan alternated between good stretches and long slumps, showing little consistency over the course of the forty minutes and struggling to find reliable go-to players in the decisive moments of the game. These issues inevitably raise questions about the path the team has taken.
At the moment, no immediate decisions appear to be on the horizon, but the atmosphere surrounding Olimpia has inevitably changed. The upcoming games—against Treviso in the league, and Real Madrid and Dubai in the EuroLeague—could prove decisive in quelling the rumors and restoring calm to the organization. Otherwise, the possibility of a coaching change risks evolving from mere speculation into a real possibility.
