PAOK, SCM CRAIOVA progress to #CEVCupM 8th Finals
News
On Thursday evening, PAOK THESSALONIKI secured a spot in the 8th Finals of the men’s CEV Cup by defeating Mladost ZAGREB 3-0 (25-18, 25-21, 25-20) at the PAOK Sports Arena – thus repeating the result from last week’s previous fixture contested in Croatia’s capital city.
Jay Michael Blankenau“I believe we fought well and showed what kind of team we are in this first round. We played with different formations, and every player stepped up, especially Vasileios Mouchlias and Menelaos Kokkinakis. I think we built confidence from these two games and can now turn our focus to the championship match.”
Setter of PAOK THESSALONIKI
In a highly balanced first set, where both teams were neck and neck until the midway point, PAOK sought to increase the pace to extend their lead. Utilising the block, PAOK gained a significant advantage at a crucial point, leading 18-14 and putting much pressure on the Croatians. With a consistently strong performance, the Black-and-White team kept Mladost at a safe distance throughout the final stretch, winning the opening set with the score of 25-18.
The second set was marked by fluctuations in the performance of both teams, with good intervals and bursts of energy. The visitors started better, leading 8-6, but PAOK reacted and turned the tide to edge ahead at 14-11. Mladost responded and reversed the score to 18-17 in their favour, but PAOK showed its strength in the final stretch, eventually securing a 25-21 set win.
In the third set, PAOK coach Joshko Milenkoski gave more playing time to a variety of players, aiming to maintain a competitive rhythm. Another balanced set ensued, with PAOK holding the lead at 17-14. Without facing any more significant threats from the Croatians, PAOK secured a 3-0 victory with a score of 25-20.
Bram Van den Dries“We played a good game today. Although we made some service errors in the first set, we corrected them and started playing better. Each set was balanced, but in the final points, we applied more pressure and secured the win. We wanted to advance, as a big challenge awaits us against MILANO.”
Opposite of PAOK and top scorer with 19 points
In the next round, PAOK will face the Italian team Allianz MILANO in a two-leg knockout format on December 12-14 (home) and December 19-21 (away).
Elsewhere, Romania’s SCM CRAIOVA advanced to the 8th Finals as well after they obtained a decisive victory in their home game against Radnicki KRAGUJEVAC of Serbia. The Romanians did so by rallying to a 3-1 win (25-22, 23-25, 25-21, 25-20).
CRAIOVA started with a very determined run (17-10) and even if the visiting team almost completed a comeback (23-21), the hosts closed at 25-22 a set that they had essentially dominated. The second set went the other way, with Radnicki setting the pace from the start (18-11) until the home team mounted an enthusiastic comeback, even briefly taking control (21-20). The spectacular set ended in favour of the Serbian team (25-23). These two head-to-head sets reminded fans of the thriller from the first leg, where the decisive tie-break set had ended in a whooping 30-28 win for Radnicki. However, CRAIOVA gained confidence in the next two sets, being able to hold on to a small advantage, eventually securing the victory (25-21, 25-20) in front of 700 enthusiastic spectators.
Danut Pascu“It was a hard match and I congratulate my players for the way they did their job. We had ups and downs but at the end, we were precise in what we prepared for this game and the result is what we were looking for.”
Head coach of SCM CRAIOVA
Aleksa Brdjovic, head coach of Radnicki KRAGUJEVAC: “I think for us it was a good game, especially considering we missed an important player, and I am satisfied, since the guys did fight till the end. CRAIOVA was the better team today overall.”
Juan Ignacio Finoli, captain of SCM CRAIOVA: “I think our team has a lot of potential, we had extremely good moments but also weak ones. The key is to overcome mistakes in difficult moments. Radnicki was a difficult team to play against, but I think after these two matches, we proved that CRAIOVA was the better team. Now we need to enjoy the next games.”
The next opponent for the Romanians will be Aluron CMC Warta ZAWIERCIE of Poland.
