07/12/2015 21:11
NANTES VB back in action, this time in Challenge Cup
2016 CEV Volleyball Challenge Cup - Women
Nantes, France, December 7, 2015. On Tuesday night NANTES VB will resume their European campaign in the 2016 CEV Volleyball Challenge Cup – Women after losing to Ukraine’s Khimik YUZHNY in the first round of the CEV Volleyball Cup. NANTES VB will be playing Mladost ZAGREB hoping to get the right edge for the return match which is set to follow in Croatia’s capital one week later.
Team captain Marion Gauthier-Rat says: “The European Cup is always a separate and very exciting competition. We know that each time the ambiance and the atmosphere are kind of exceptional and that a large audience will be there for us. This pushes us to perform to the best of our abilities and to challenge ourselves to make this event a real show.”
As far as the Croatian team is concerned, she adds: “We would like to play a steady game from start to end and in each fundamental, putting pressure on them with our offensive game. In order to be successful it will be necessary to manage and develop good team work, while performing well also when it comes to the ABC of the game.”
Coach Sylvain Quinquis says: “The atmosphere of the first home match was extraordinary, the volunteers and the communication managers did an important work in order for us to play in front of more than 5,000 people! The players love this arena which is just the perfect place to perform at the highest level. We therefore play to win.”
With regards to Mladost ZAGREB, Quinquis adds: “It is a young team with talented players, in particular their outside spikers, it is a strong group which is very well organised and I am sure that they will be very motivated and determined. We have to play a steady game and keep the emotions under control.”
On the Croatian side, team captain Iva Jurisic says: “We know that NANTES VB is a good team so we expect a tough match. We are going there to fight and to win.”
“My team feels very excited. We are a young team, without any foreign players. Our main goal is to gain experience, learn and improve ourselves. We have had a very good season so far and so there is a strong motivation for us to show that we are good enough to play against strong teams like NANTES VB in front of a loud and large home crowd. We didn’t have much time to prepare this game. Our schedule has been very busy with three more competitions besides the Challenge Cup. We had the usual run-up like we do for any other match with a focus on mental and tactical preparation,” concludes Mladost ZAGREB head coach Edo Klein.
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