From the court to the sideline: Masny’s new EuroVolley challenge
Feature
Slovakia returned to the EuroVolley stage after missing the 2023 edition, entering CEV Enel EuroVolley 2026 Men with a new head coach and a team determined to make the most of their opportunity in a highly competitive Pool A in Modena. At the helm is Michal Masný, who made a remarkably quick transition from player to coach and, starting this season, took charge of his native national team.
For Michal Masny, 47, the role is a return to familiar territory. A former setter, he represented Slovakia at EuroVolley 2003 and spent the majority of his club career in Poland, where he won a Champions League bronze medal with Jastrzębski Węgiel in 2014. With the national team, he also claimed two European League titles, in 2008 and 2011.
“It’s a big honour to be the coach of the national team, so I feel really great to be here. However, sometimes after losing matches it is a little bit more difficult,” Masný says with a smile.
His journey from the court to the sideline has been anything but conventional. Michal Masny officially ended his playing career in 2022 and immediately moved into coaching, taking charge of BKS Bydgoszcz. Yet even after announcing his retirement, he was occasionally called back into action when his team needed an emergency setter.
Michal Masny“I retired four years ago, but there were a couple of games when I had to play because my setter had some problems, so let’s say I fully retired three years ago. Of course, I did not expect that in such a short period of time I would become head coach of the national team. If you had asked me 10 years ago whether, after four years as a coach, I would be coaching the national team, I would not have believed you for sure.”
head coach of Slovakia
As a setter, Masny was the player responsible for playmaking and making decisions in the heat of the battle. Now, his perspective has changed completely as he watches the action unfold from the sideline.
“It’s difficult to explain because, for me, from the sideline there are some situations that are really, really easy to understand. But I have to understand whether the players on the court, in the short time they have, are able to manage the situation and try to understand what I see. If I’m able to understand it, then it’s a little bit easier for me.”
Slovakia’s return to EuroVolley - their eighth appearance at the competition - is already an important achievement, but Masný insists it should be viewed as the beginning rather than the destination.
“Let’s say from May, we did a big step. And, of course, as you said, it is a process, a long process, so we have to be patient. It’s the first step and we have to keep working, but not only with the national team, because the national team is, let’s say, a short period. We have to keep working also in the clubs and in the league. Then it will be easier and we can make another big step.”
In Modena, Slovakia have already shown glimpses of their potential. They pushed 2023 bronze medallists Slovenia hard before taking a set from world champions Italy, demonstrating that they can compete with some of the tournament’s strongest teams. Against Czechia, however, they struggled to reproduce that level, having less than 24 hours to recover from their demanding encounter with Italy.
Michal Masny“I expected it could be hard to play against Czechia, and that our performance could be a little worse than the day before because I have 11 new guys in the team who have never played in this kind of tournament. For them, it’s really difficult to play two games in a row, especially with such a short time for rest as we had. So I expected it a little bit, but the game against Italy showed us what we are able to do. Against Czechia, it was reality. This game showed us where we are.”
head coach of Slovakia
Slovakia’s EuroVolley journey, however, is far from over. With their place in the Eight Finals still within reach, the upcoming matches against Sweden and Greece could prove decisive.
“These two games are, let’s say, the most important for us because if we want to progress from the group, we have to win. Of course, we have to wait because in some scenarios one win might be enough, but I think we need to win both. We have to do our best to prepare. So, I think more mentally than physically.”
For Masny and his young Slovakia side, EuroVolley is therefore about more than results. It is the next step in a longer rebuilding process - one that began with a former setter moving to the sideline and taking on a new challenge in his career.
