EuroVolleyM 2023: Türkiye ready to surprise the favourites
The newest addition to the Men’s VNL, the team of Türkiye, is already gearing up for the next big challenge that lies ahead of them this summer - the 2023 CEV European Volleyball Championship - Men.
Türkiye, who have been constantly improving their performance in the recent years, are ready to take on their opponents from Pool D - the teams of Greece, Israel, France, Romania and Portugal. Guided by a new head coach - the Italian specialist Alberto Giuliani, team Türkiye has already accomplished one of the 2023 tasks by joining the world’s men elite in 2024.
How far will they come in EuroVolley?
The Turkish team has the potential not only to make it out of the group phase, but to disappoint some of the favourites in the competition.
Türkiye at the European Championships
This will be the 12th time that the Balkan country appears on the biggest European stage. However, they have never made it to the podium, as their best ranking has been the 10th place in 2021. In all the other appearances, the Turkish have finished between the 10th and 15th place.
EuroVolley 2021
Back in 2021, Türkiye started their European Championship journey from Pool C, meeting the teams of the Netherlands, Russia, Finland, Spain and North Macedonia.
The Turkish players, under the guidance of head coach Nedim Özbey did qualify for the eight finals, where they met the team of Serbia, who were, at the moment, reigning European champions. Türkiye put up a real fight, losing in a thrilling five-setter. Led by Adis Lagumdzija, Yigit Gülmezoglu, and captain Burak Güngör, the Turkish squad finished on a better count in attack (56 to 55) and recorded more blocks than their opponents (11 to eight), as one less ace and their own mistakes stood in their way of advancing ahead.
For sure, the key player for the Turkish team was Adis Lagumdzija. The scoring machine finished as a third-best scorer at 2021 #EuroVolleyM, playing in 10 matches (37 sets) with 176 points to his name (an average of 4.76). He also became one of the five players who recorded 100+ killing spikes (104), alongside Nimir Abdel Aziz (146), Uros Kovacevic (109), Toncek Stern (105) and Wilfredo Leon Venero (102).
EuroLeague
Türkiye won the Golden European League in 2023, after a 3-2 win versus Ukraine in the final on 25 June, held in Zadar (CRO). They also won this competition in 2019 and 2021, and finished runners-up in 2022.
On their way to the 2023 gold, the Turkish first met in the semi-final the Czech Republic, winning at 3-2. Adis Lagumdzija became again top scorer, finishing with 16 points. Overall, the Turks did better in attacking (64 to 53 winning spikes), and were close to their opponents in the other elements - 13 to 14 kill blocks, and five to six aces.
In the Big Finale, they had to face Ukraine and survived through another five-setter, seizing all their chances on their opponents’ errors (40 to 25). On the other counts, they could have performed better - 48 to 60 winning spikes, seven to seven kill blocks, six to seven aces. In this match, Kaan Gürbuz (19pts.) and Efe Bayram (15pts.) turned out to be the trump cards of the Turkish squad.
The 2023 Challenger Cup
A dream came true for Türkiye when, in the end of July this year, they won the 2023 Challenger Cup.After two unsuccessful attempts (in 2019 and 2022) to qualify, the Turks finally made it to VNL, where the best teams on the world Volleyball stage line up for honours each summer.
In the deciding match in 2023, they had a five-set final battle against the hosts of the tournament - Qatar, and finally managed to secure a ticket to VNL.
Their better serving (eight aces to none) and better work on the block (14 kill blocks against nine) were crucial for the final outcome of the game. The magic duo Adis Lagumdzija and Efe Bayram did not disappoint again (21 and 18 pts. respectively).
The new coach
Expectations are high for the new head coach of the Turkish team, but if there is a person who can handle that well, then Alberto Giuliani is the right person to do so.
He has experience with coaching national teams, as he has done this with Slovakia (2015-2016) and with Slovenia (2019 to 2021). Under his guidance, Slovenia reserved their spot at the VNL after winning the Volleyball Challenger Cup Gold in 2019, and are also back-to-back EuroVolleyM silver medallists.
The roster
40 players were called up by Guiliani in May, starting the preparation for the busy summer.
The Turkish team that is currently ranked 14th in the world (FIVB World Ranking) is formed by some already experienced players, who know how to handle the pressure of important international battles, and others who are yet to prove themselves.
Setters: Arslan Ekşi, Arda Bostan, Caner Çiçekoğlu, Muzaffer Manage
Opposites: Adis Lagumdzdija, Kaan Gürbüz, Oğuzhan Tarakçı, Metin Toy
Outside hitters: Abdullah Çam, Burutay Subaşı, Cafer Kirkit, Efe Bayram, Mirza Lagumdzija, Yiğit Gülmezoğlu, Yasin Aydın, Abdulsamet Yalçın, Burak Güngör
Middle blockers: Ahmet Samet Baltacı, Ahmet Tümer, Bedirhan Bülbül, Doğukan Ulu, Faik Samet Güneş, Mert Matic, Oğuzhan Karasu, Vahit Emre Savaş, Yunus Emre Tayaz, Burakhan Tosun
Líberos: Berkay Bayraktar, Beytullah Hatipoğlu, Volkan Döne
In the preparation for 2023 #EuroVolleyM, team Türkiye has already played friendly games against Egypt (won 3-1), and against Japan (won 3-1). On August 18 and August 19, the Turkish will lock horns with Serbia in their last two games before the kick off of the European Championship.
After EuroVolleyM
Achieving success at EuroVolleyM would mean that Türkiye could have an additional boost of inspiration. From September 30 to October 8, the Turkish team will take part in an Olympic Qualification, where they will play Japan, USA, Slovenia, Serbia, Tunisia, Egypt and Finland.