Luxembourg, June 2, 2018. On Saturday, Turkey secured their spot in the Final Four of the 2018 CEV Volleyball Golden European League - Men, despite their 2-3 loss to The Netherlands in Pool B. While The Netherlands can still equal Turkey in terms of matches won and ranking points, they won't be able to do the same when it comes to their match sets ratio. Elsewhere on Saturday, Sweden beat Slovakia 3-0 in Pool A, where Estonia and Belgium are chasing a spot in the Final Four. Teams of Pool C are yet to compete this weekend, with all matches scheduled for Sunday. 

Pool A

Sweden vs. Slovakia 3-0 (27-25, 32-30, 25-21)

Pool B

The Netherlands vs. Turkey 3-2  
(24-26, 25-21, 25-22, 23-25, 15-9)

• The Netherlands competed with Turkey in a completely sold out Sports Hall De Basis in Sliedrecht.
• Dutch opposite and captain Nimir Abdel-Aziz top scored with 26 points. 
• Fabian Plak, the younger brother of Celeste Plak, impressed the crowd with as many as eight blocks, the same amount as all of the Turkish blocks.
• When the score reached 2-2 in sets, Turkey secured the pool win and a ticket to the Final Four in Karlovy Vary. The Netherlands can tie Turkey in terms of matches won and ranking points, but not in terms of match sets ratio.

Maarten van Garderen, outside hitter of The Netherlands: “We know we can play very well as a team. But in some moments we are not able to maintain the lead. We are missing some confidence to finish it off once it gets serious. It was good to finish with a win in front of our own audience, but it hurts that we lost our chance for a spot in the Final Four.”

For more details about the competition click here.