27/03/2017 13:35
Fakel NOVY URENGOY feel ready to host Galatasaray in Challenge Cup semis
2017 CEV Volleyball Challenge Cup - Men
Novy Urengoy, Russia, March 27, 2017. Fakel NOVY URENGOY will be hosting Turkey’s Galatasaray HDI ISTANBUL this coming Wednesday, March 29 in the first round of the 2017 CEV Volleyball Challenge Cup – Men semi-finals. Galatasaray progressed to the semis after edging Israel’s Maccabi TEL-AVIV in the quarterfinals whereas Fakel easily beat Norway’s Viking TIF BERGEN.
Galatasaray HDI ISTANBUL achieved quite a historic feat since they progressed to the semis of a European competition for the first time in 17 years. The actual head coach of Fakel, Italian-born Camillo Placi, knows Galatasaray pretty well since he started the current season working with Halkbank ANKARA in the Turkish national league. Placi will be trying to use this advantage when Fakel NOVY URENGOY play Galatasaray on Wednesday, March 29 at Zvezdny Sports Palace.
The roster of Galatasaray HDI ISTANBUL includes a number of accomplished Volleyball players, such as Zbigniew Bartman, a European champion (in 2009) and gold medallist from the FIVB World League (in 2012) and an Olympian (in 2012 as well) with the Polish national team. Opposite hitter Samuele Tuia, who played for the French national team earlier in his career, is another standout player as well – and he is quite known in Russia since he wore the shirt of Kuzbass KEMEROVO in the Russian national league.
Fakel NOVY URENGOY will respond with a star-studded roster as well, including Russian national team players Egor Kliuka and Dmitrii Volkov, as well as Ilia Vlasov and Igor Kolodinsky. Fakel will be fighting with everything they have in order to make it to the final stage of the Challenge Cup for the second straight season – after last year they lost in the finals to Italy’s Calzedonia VERONA.
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