Poland only unbeaten team left at #EuroVolleyU18M

Action at this year’s #EuroVolleyU18M returned on Saturday after a rest day with high-level matches contested and Poland emerging as the sole team with a perfect record of four wins in as many matches as they beat hosts Italy 3-1 in Porto San Giorgio. 

Pool I in Porto San Giorgio

To start the day, Serbia failed to find the right countermeasures to stop Slovenia, whose players cruised to a resounding 3-0 victory (25-19, 25-23, 25-19) to improve their win-loss record to 3-1. In the second match of the day, Finland vs. Greece, the third set alone lasted 56 minutes. Ultimately, the Greeks prevailed over the Finns 3-1 (21-25, 26-24, 32-30, 27-25). Later in the afternoon, in a matchup featuring two winless teams, Türkiye moved up the standings by beating Iceland 3-0 (25-14, 25-21, 25-10), thereby securing the first three points of the tournament.

The big match of the evening went to Poland. After recording three wins in their first three games, Italy failed to prevail against Poland, losing 1-3 (25-19, 20-25, 19-25, 23-25). On the other hand, coach Jacek Nawrocki’s players extended their winning streak, remaining the only team across the two pools with a perfect score (four wins and 12 points). The top scorer of the evening was Poland’s Karol Leppert with 20 points, followed by teammates Adam Potempa and Bartosz Fidyk (18 and 17). Worth noting for the Italians was Diego Bussolari’s fourth consecutive double-digit performance (11). 

Michele Mangini, player of Italy: “We played with all our strength, and that is why we had some excellent runs. We always tried to give our all without giving up, demonstrating that we are here to fight. Getting back on the court immediately tomorrow is a good thing; we have a chance to bounce back against Iceland, a team not to be underestimated.” 

Pool II in Cisterna di Latina 

Belgium suffered their first defeat, losing in three sets to Czechia (23-25, 17-25, 17-25). The Red Dragons lost the top spot in the standings and currently share the same result with the Czechs – three wins and eight points. The first set was balanced, with the game going point-for-point, but the Czechs made the decisive break in the final stages and earned three set points. Belgium only saved the first, and the Czechs went up 1-0 (25-23). The second set started off fairly evenly, before the Czechs scored six times in a row (19-13), paving the way for the final 25-17 score. The Czechs started the third set with a small advantage (+3), which they extended to 13-6, and easily won it 25-17.
Czechia coach Jan Svoboda: “We are working hard, trying to maintain a positive attitude and maximum concentration. We are not looking at the standings; we will take one game at a time, without making any calculations.”

France and Bulgaria now lead the standings in the pool with three wins and nine points each. On Saturday, France secured their third consecutive victory with maximum points showing technical superiority. Germany stayed in contention for a good half of the first set, which was decided in the final third (25-20); in the second set, the Bleus increased the pace and conceded very little (25-17) and in the third, trailing 22-18, the Germans gave it everything they had to extend the match, but at 22-22, the French quality made the difference (25-22).
French coach Paul Cooper: “Our strength is the group, including the quality of the players coming off the bench, which allows us to rely on a large number of players. The opening match loss was a wake-up call. The boys understood that they have to play with incredible intensity, always. We are masters of our own destiny because we are now first in the group. It is up to us to keep winning; only then will we reach the semi-finals.”

Bulgaria made no concessions to Romania, and in one hour and 11 minutes they took the match. Romania held the pressure in the early stages, before Bulgaria changed gear (16-13) taking the opening set (25-19). The second set followed a similar pattern, with Bulgaria pulling off an identical breakaway (16-13), which resulted in a 25-18 score. The third set was a similar story, with the young Lions quickly pulling away from Romania and reaching the finish line without any problems. Bulgaria put in an excellent team performance, with Nikola Gradinarov emerging as their top scorer (17 points).

Later in the evening, Spain secured their second victory of the competition against the Netherlands (25-16, 25-17, 25-21) to remain in contention for a top-two spot, although with four teams ahead of them, they will need to win practically every match from now until the end to reach the semi-finals. Against the Netherlands, the Spanish team won easily, leading the match from start to finish. Only in the last set did the young Oranjes show some reaction, but it was too little too late to extend the match.