Greeted with chants and presents: Zeljko Obradovic applauded at Ulker Sports Arena / News - Basketnews.com

Zeljko Obradovic came back to his home in Istanbul. Hundreds of Fenerbahce fans applauded their former legendary coach. He made his first appearance at Ulker Sports Arena after leaving Fenerbahce in 2020 and accepting a job with Partizan Belgrade.

Zeljko Obradovic showed up on the court one hour before tip-off. Fenerbahce GM Maurizio Gherardini quickly greeted his good friend and former colleague. Suddenly all Fenerbahce front office members and the coaching staff gathered next to Partizan's bench.

After a nice small talk, Fenerbahce fans from the stands started approaching Obradovic.

"Here we go," Zeljko looked at Gherardini and shrugged his shoulders.

But former Fenerbahce coach kindly accepted all the selfies and signatures requests. One fan actually gave him a bunch of flowers and a bag of some goods. Obradovic was a bit surprised but accepted it with pleasure.

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The main show started around 15 minutes prior to the tip-off.

At first, Fenerbahce fans applauded former Fenerbahce assistants Josep Maria Izquierdo and Vladimir Androic, who joined Zeljko in Partizan. Later, Zeljko Obradovic came out of the tunnel with a wide smile on his face.

The Ulker Sports Arena was more crowded than during the warm-up, and more fans were waiting for their beloved hero. Zeljko was waiving at them, appreciating the support, not just during this special night but also throughout the years he spent at Fener.

Fenerbahce will organize a special ceremony for Zeljko before the second game of Istanball Cup, where hosts will face UNICS Kazan.

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