The 6-time champions Zenit KAZAN have rebooted their 2020 Champions League Volley campaign. In a one-sided match against Belgian hopefuls VC Greenyard MAASEIK the Russian side pulled the match close and never let go of it. In twenty minutes each the first two sets went the way of KAZAN quite emphatically (25-14, 25-10). MAASEIK resisted a little halfway through the third set, but never came close to winning. The third set was 25-22.

The 2,100 present at the Saint Petersburg hall in Kazan witnessed a marvellous display by the home team. A total of 12 blocks were scored in the three sets, a 65% attack rate was reached and Tsvetan Sokolov and Earvin Ngapeth were joined top scorers with 16 each. Rasmus Breuning Nielsen scored 11 for MAASEIK.

With the win Zenit KAZAN are now second in Pool C with two victories and eight points. On top is JASTRZEBSKI Wegiel, who won their fourth match to lead the group with four wins. KAZAN still have a chance of progresseing to the quarterfinals, but the two remaining group matches have to be won.

Joel Banks, head coach of VC Greenyard MAASEIK: “At Maaseik we just took our chance. Zenit KAZAN was not in their best condition after grueling flight from Brazil. In the return game, we did everything we could, but Zenit was too good. Our opponent played almost without any mistakes, we could not score in attack. I am upset with the fact that we did not score more points in sets, but Zenit was just better than us.”

Aleksey Verbov, head coach of Zenit KAZAN: “Tonight we put a lot of pressure on the visiting team from the very first serves to the very last point we scored, and I would say I noticed some hesitation, lack of self-confidence, and even some kind of fear on the other side of the net. The victory we claimed tonight is the courtesy of the whole team, each and every player. You know, it is our game to box the opponent in. The first playoff match is over, but there are two more ahead. ”

Maxim Mikhailov, opposite for Zenit KAZAN: “We wanted to bounce back and make up for bitter loss we suffered in the last match of the Champions League from JASTRZEBSKI Wegiel. We were angry with ourselves and it galvanized us throughout the whole match. Since we lost to them in Belgium, it means we were not good enough.”