01/01/2021 09:00
Bulgaria looks in fine form in friendly matches with Macedonian opposition
News from the National Federations
Skopje, North Macedonia, January 1, 2021. Any players can reach their top form only through competitive matches, so although they did not have enough training with their respective full rosters, the Macedonian and Bulgarian national teams played two friendly matches in Skopje in preparation for the upcoming CEV EuroVolley 2021 qualifiers. The visiting team recorded two wins in as many matches and thus won the 44th edition of the traditional memorial tournament ‘Branko Hadziiljoski – Chajka’.
Knowing that national teams had no activities at all since the end of the previous continental championship in 2019 because of the coronavirus crisis, the Volleyball Federation of North Macedonia decided to schedule the oldest Volleyball event in the Balkan country at the end of the year, when some other federations were due to hold preparations for the EuroVolley qualifiers. For the two coaches, the Macedonian Nikola Matijasevic and the Italian-born mentor of Bulgaria, Silvano Prandi, it was a good opportunity to test the possibilities of their players at this moment.
Prandi has a bigger reason for satisfaction because Bulgaria won the first match 3-2 (20-25, 22-25, 25-20, 25-14, 19-17) after coming back from two sets down and cancelling three match points for the home side. Bulgaria emerged victorious from the second match as well (3-1; 17-25, 25-18, 25-22, 25-22), although the Macedonian team had again the better start. Bulgaria showed a better attack and scored more points from the block and the service, and effectively used their quality reserve players as well, so it deservedly raised the trophy at the tournament held this year at the ‘Boris Trajkovski’ arena in Skopje instead of the traditional hometown of Tetovo in order to accommodate the guests even better.
Macedonian player Gjorgi Gjorgiev received the award for the best setter, and the young Bulgarian prospect, 17-year-old Aleksandar Nikolov (the son of the legendary Vladimir) from the club Levski SOFIA received an individual award as well. Both control matches were useful for the two teams, with another two such fixtures to follow on January 5 and 6 in Sofia.
The Macedonians are due to host the teams of Turkey and Bosnia and Herzegovina for a double round robin – EuroVolley qualifier in Skopje from January 11-16, while Bulgaria will travel to Israel to play the hosts and Austria from January 12 to 17 in another highly anticipated EuroVolley qualifying event.
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