Italy and Poland finish the 2023 FIVB Volleyball Men's Nations League preliminary round on a high

Four European teams have made it to the final round of the 2023 FIVB Volleyball Men's Nations League, as hosts Poland were joined by Italy, Slovenia and France, with the latter making the cut only after they secured a 3:1 win over Germany in the last game of the last pool.

The last two pools of the preliminary round of the 2023 FIVB Volleyball Men's Nations League took place last week in Anaheim, the United States of America and in Pasay City, Philippines, with the top European sides in the competition continuing their preparation for the CEV EuroVolley 2023 Men.

The reigning European champions, Italy, shrugged off their sluggish start in the preliminary round and bounced back in style, taking four wins in four matches, dropping only four sets over the course.

With the MVP of the CEV EuroVolley 2021 Men, Simone Giannelli, back into the fold, Italy started with a 3:1 win over Brazil and doubled down with a 3:2 win over Canada. Those good results were immediately backed by a 3:0 win over Slovenia and a 3:1 win over Japan, with outside hitter Alessandro Michieletto and opposite Yuri Romanò shining in all of the games.

Romanò was also the second-best server in the preliminary round of the competition, with 21 aces, only four behind the Netherlands’ Nimir Abdel-Aziz, who was also the best scorer after the 12 games, with 217 points.

However, the Netherlands failed to make the cut, after conceding three losses in the last four matches, as their three-matches losing streak, where they won a single set against Brazil, Slovenia and Japan, saw them drop down to the tenth place in the final standings.

Poland, which had 10 wins and only two losses in the 12 matches, have also prepared in excellent fashion for the final round of the 2023 FIVB Volleyball Men's Nations League, winning five games in a row, including the last four of the preliminary round.

After a hard-fought win against Slovenia, 3:2, and another one against Brazil, 3:1, they secured wins against Canada and Japan in straight sets, delivering excellent performances, as they look red hot in the build up for the CEV EuroVolley 2023 Men.

However, they still finished third in the standings, as the United States of America and Japan, which finished with the same number of wins, 10 out of 12 matches, had a better set difference, with the Asian side still finishing second, despite dropping the matches against Italy and Poland to finish the preliminary round.

In the quarter-finals, Poland will face Brazil, in the ERGO Arena in Gdansk, Slovenia will play against Japan, Italy face Argentina, while France, the last team to secure their tickets to the knockout phase, face USA.

Serbia, which finished ninth, the Netherlands (10th), Germany (11th) and Bulgaria (15th), all failed to make the knockout phase, which will take place in Gdansk, Poland, between 19 and 23 July.