Luxembourg, January 11, 2021. North Macedonia started on a positive note in the #EuroVolleyM Qualifiers by outclassing on Monday evening the team of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In what was the first official European Volleyball match for 2021, Nikola Gjorgiev topped the charts for the winners recording 29 points. Monday’s matchup against Bosnia and Herzegovina was the 149th for the Macedonian volleyball players in qualifiers for major events and their 68th victory.

North Macedonia vs Bosnia and Herzegovina 3-1 (27-25, 25-21, 23-25, 25-19)

• The hosts did not start in the very best way allowing their opponents to take the lead. However, they got back on track thanks to a good performance on the net and good contribution by Aleksandar Ljaftov.
• Better play on attack was the key element for North Macedonia’s victory.
• Both teams scored 5 aces each.
• Bosnia and Herzegovina dominated in the third part, showing better skills on block.
• Bosnia and Herzegovina could not manage to cope with the tension and let too many unforced errors in reception affect their overall game.
• Home star Nikola Gjorgiev became Top Scorer with his 29 points, while for Bosnia and Herzegovina Adi Osmanovic scored 22 points. 

"I knew it would be difficult. The opponent was unknown to us, they surprised us at the beginning and we had difficult times. If we want to qualify, we need to improve many components in our game," Macedonian captain Nikola Gjorgiev said after the match. 

"We are a young team. We have the support of several more experienced players, but it wasn't enough. We made a lot of mistakes. The result could have been different if we had solved these problems," Adi Osmanovic, player of Bosnia and Herzegovina added. 

On Tuesday, Bosnia and Herzegovina meet the team of Turkey at 18.00h local time, while the team of North Macedonia have a day off.