Impeccable Italy roar into quarter-finals, the Netherlands prevail in dramatic five-setter

Faboulous Italy, powered by unstoppable Daniele Lavia and Alessandro Michieletto, stunned the fans at fully packed PalaFlorio Bari to book their spot in the quarter-finals. The second ticket to the last eight was grabbed by the Netherlands, who prevailed over Germany in dramatic five-setter.

Italy vs North Macedonia 3-0 (25-20, 25-12, 25-15)

The knockout stage started in Bari with a bang, as it was the hosts Italy and North Macedonia to enter the court in Palaflorio first. In front of 5000 spectators, the team under the guidance of coach Ferdinando de Giorgi, played an almost flawless game, sparking the crowd. The Azzurri opened the game with full focus and determination, quickly running away with the score. Alessandro Michieletto and Daniele Lavia shone bright on the court, playing at class of their own. Lavia in particular deserved a standing ovation as he played perfectly, recording 100% positive receptions in the first two sets (out of 11 attempts), eventually finishing the game with 95% positive reception (with 19 receptions in total). But Lavia showed her mastery also in attack, finishing 13 out of 15 attacks (87% of success in attack!), adding to it also 2 killing blocks and 2 aces.

North Macedonia tried their best. Alesksandar Ljaftov scored 10 points, but their efforts were not enough against the Italians, who were simply out of their range. Alessandro Michieletto also played flawless - scoring 12 points with 77% of success in attack and 75% of positive receptions. Exactly the same number of points under his belt had Yuri Romano.

The Netherlands vs Germany 3-2 (25-20, 25-23, 22-25, 18-25, 15-12)

Later that night, in the second eight-final game played at Palaflorio Bari, the Netherlands upset Germany in the fierce five-set battle between those two neighbours. Although the Oranje were leading 2-0, the Germans came back to extend the game into a tie-break. The fans, who in huge numbers stayed in the hall, could enjoy a true five-set Volleyball show, filled with powerful hits from both sides - as expected, having György Grozer (22 points) and Nimir Abdel-Aziz (18 points) on opposite sides of the net. Very good performances were recorded by Denys Kaliberda on the German side - 15 points (70% of success in attack) and on the Dutch side, Bennie Tuinstra (16 points), along with Gijs Jorna and Michael Parkinson - 10 points apiece. The fifth set, however, was Nimir's show - the Dutch opposite scored himself 6 points, hammering 6 of 7 attacks and leading his team to the last eight, where they will face Italy on Tuesday.