EuroVolleyM: Heavyweights Poland and Russia clash for a spot in the semis
Preview
A matchup many expected to happen in the gold medal match of the CEV EuroVolley Men 2021 will take place well earlier than that as continental powerhouses Poland and Russia play each other on Tuesday, in Gdansk, in the quarterfinals of the tournament. Earlier on the same day and location, defending champions Serbia go up against the Netherlands for another spot in the semifinals.
One of just two undefeated teams standing in the tournament alongside Italy, Poland is looking for its second continental title after winning the EuroVolley for the first and only time so far in 2009. The reigning world champions made it to the semifinals in 2019, but had to settle for bronze.
The Eagles were brilliant in pool play, winning all of their five matches, including a five-setter against defending champions Serbia, and didn’t slow down in the Eight Finals, where they sent Finland home in three sets.
The best news for the Polish in their most recent match were the solid performances of outside hitter Wilfredo Leon (14 points, with nine kills, three aces and two blocks) and opposite Bartosz Kurek (11 points, with ten kills and one block). After somewhat quiet pool play production to their standards, the team’s star players seem to be heating up as the deciding moment of the tournament approaches.
Russia, on the other hand, hasn’t been as ‘clean’ in the tournament, as the Tokyo Olympics silver medalists dropped their opening match to Turkey and the first set of their Eight Final matchup against Ukraine before turning things around and winning 3-1.
With his two main opposites unavailable in Maxim Mikhaylov and Victor Poletaev, head coach Tuomas Sammelvuo had to improvise, moving outside hitter Egor Kliuka to the position and the decision seems to be paying off as the 26-year-old hitter is currently the third-best scorer of the EuroVolley with 106 points.
Tradition could also be on the Russian side as they are not only the winningest nation of the EuroVolley with 14 titles but have also claimed a pair of important gold medals at the Ergo Arena – the 2013 European Championship and the 2011 FIVB World League.
