The The power of Bologna leaves the match againstOlympiakos not only with a defeat, but also with a big problem: Carsen Edwards. The player, who had sprained his right ankle after a few minutes of play, continued to play despite the pain, but will now have to stop for at least two weeks.
The Virtus press release: Edwards’ diagnosis
The Juventus club issued an official statement which specifies that Edwards has suffered an injury right ankle sprain with ligament involvement. The player has already started specific therapies, but will need to be re-evaluated in the next few days to better understand recovery times. Virtus did not provide specific details, but Edwards is likely to miss several games.
Matches at risk for Virtus without Carsen Edwards
With a high frequency of matches between the championship and the Euroleague, Edwards will probably have to miss some crucial matches. Virtus will face Trieste, Milan in the Euroleaguee Trapani in the next few weeks. Furthermore, there will be a double round of Euroleague against Zalgiris e Panathinaikos which will see the team probably without its best scorer.
Ivanovicthe coach of Virtus, will have to adapt to the situation and find alternative solutions, relying on players like Morgan e Taylor to make up for Edwards’ absence. Morgan, in particular, was in great form during the comeback against Olympiacos. Without Edwards, he will have to take on a lot of responsibility on offense.
The controversies over refereeing: the 5-second error
In addition to Edwards’ injury, Virtus is also dealing with another issue: the missed whistle for 5 second infringement during Olympiacos’ throw-in a few seconds before the end of the match. The general director Paolo Ronci he commented sarcastically: «Five seconds that were six», underlining the error which effectively deprived Virtus of a possible recovery opportunity.
This error triggered new controversiesand the Juventus club has already sent a video report toEuroleague to highlight the serious refereeing error. If the whistle had been correct, Virtus would have had more time to attempt a decisive attack, given that they were one point down.
The consequences for Virtus: the play-in objective at risk
The defeat against Olympiacos, combined with the refereeing error, further complicated the situation Euroleague for Virtus. The team is now located at two victories away from the play-in objective, with only one matchday to play before the end of the first round.
Despite the difficulties, Virtus does not lose hope and will try to react in the next matches, exploiting internal resources and trying to quickly recover key players.
