12/10/2015 17:30
Slovenia set sight on historic qualification for men’s EuroVolley quarterfinals
2015 CEV Volleyball European Championship - Men
Sofia, Bulgaria, October 12, 2015. On Monday morning Slovenia travelled on an early flight from Varna to Sofia to continue their adventure at the 2015 men’s EuroVolley with the playoff match against The Netherlands which is set to open the programme on Tuesday at Arena Armeec in Bulgaria’s capital. Slovenia’s mentor Andrea Giani is very positive and takes many pros from the matches that his guys played in Pool C.
Slovenia was one of the last teams to secure their promotion to the final round of the 2015 men’s EuroVolley as they claimed that much coveted ticket to Bulgaria only in late May following their wins in two matches with Portugal in the last stage of the qualification process.
It has been a busy summer for Slovenia as the team swept 12 consecutive matches to win this year’s CEV Volleyball European League and get the right to join the next edition of the FIVB Volleyball World League. The team is definitely on the rise and hoping to continue that positive trend also at the 2015 men’s EuroVolley.
“We played three good matches in Varna,” Giani explains, “especially those with Poland and Belgium where all sets were very close, with the only exception being the last period of our match up with the reigning world champions. We have come to Sofia being motivated to stay in this competition. The Netherlands have a good team and it is going to be another close race but we are determined to fight and make it to the next round.”
Giani has been at the helm of the Slovenian national team for a few months only but his charisma is to be easily felt when he addresses the players in his native Italian as Mitja Gasparini & Co. take the court of the imposing Arena Armeec for the first time. “This group of players has been together for quite some time already and our work starts to pay dividends. The level here is totally different than in the European League where you get to play young teams who are still pretty much in their developing process,” Giani explains. “However, we are confident that we have what it takes to be successful at this level as well.”
Giani is pleased with the environment he has found in Slovenia where he is living his first experience as head coach of a national team after sharing much of Italy’s international success from 2011 through the end of 2014. “The infrastructure is very good; we have been based in Maribor for most of the time and had some camps in Ljubljana as well, and the Federation is doing its utmost to support us in the best way. I feel very good and am happy to be working with this group of players and all other members of the staff. Unfortunately it is too late to compete for a spot to be in the continental Olympic qualifier coming up in January but we just want to continue with our development process and I am confident that the results will follow.”
Slovenia’s rise and new status on the international stage is definitely acknowledged by many, including triple world champions Brazil who a couple of weeks ago travelled to Ljubljana to play a couple of friendly matches with Giani’s protégés. Slovenia’s next stop will be on Tuesday in a match up with The Netherlands where a historic promotion to the EuroVolley quarterfinals will be at stake.
For more information on the 2015 CEV Volleyball European Championship - Men visit eurovolley2015.net or click here. In social media, please use the competition’s official hashtag #EuroVolleyM.
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