Slovakia set for third European League semi-final, aim to hand Slovenia their first defeats

Their first objective has already been achieved – now they have the opportunity to make an already impressive campaign even better. In their tenth appearance in the CEV Volleyball European League, the Slovak women’s national team has reached the semi-finals for the third time, following their previous such runs in 2016 and 2017. Standing in their way are regular-season winners Slovenia, with the first leg scheduled for Sunday at 18:00 local time in Nitra. Both these teams have also secured their participation in the CEV EuroVolley 2028 after finishing among the top four of the League Round. 

Chasing history once again
Slovakia’s best result in the competition came ten years ago. Making their tournament debut under head coach Marek Rojko, now President of the Slovak Volleyball Federation, they eliminated Slovenia in the semi-finals with a dramatic 3-2 victory in Ljubljana followed by a 3-1 home win in Bratislava. Those defeats were Slovenia’s first-ever losses in the European League. On Sunday, the Slovaks will be looking to erase another pair of zeros from their opponents’ record – as Slovenia remain unbeaten this season in both matches and sets lost. An interesting subplot is that all four semi-finalists are led by Italian head coaches, underlining once again the reputation of Italy’s coaching school, representing the reigning Olympic and world champions.

The clash in Nitra will feature two of the youngest coaches in the competition – Martino Volpini (born in 1989) and Alessandro Orefice (1984). The other semi-final sees the more experienced duo of Alessandro Chiappini (1969), coaching Hungary, and Lorenzo Micelli (1970), in charge of Sweden. Each coaching staff also includes an Italian assistant coach.

“We have two matches ahead of us, and at this stage anything can happen,” said Volpini, whose assistants are Andrea Carasi and Michal Matušov. “Slovenia are one of the strongest teams in the competition, but we are going into the semi-finals determined to fight.”

Team captain Karolína Fričová, who is set to earn her 92nd international cap on Sunday, echoed her coach’s confidence. “We have worked incredibly hard over the past two months and achieved the goals we set for ourselves. We know we are facing a very strong opponent, but mentally we believe our European League journey is far from over. We will give everything we have to keep progressing. The fans created an amazing atmosphere for us in Poprad, and we hope the supporters in Nitra will do the same and fill the arena to cheer us on,” said the 26-year-old outside hitter.