Slovenia against Turkiye and Portugal against Ukraine in last Varna eighthfinals
Preview
After Romania and France shaped up the duel in one of the men’s CEV EuroVolley 2023 quarterfinals, another two eighthfinal matches will be played on Saturday at the Palace of Culture and Sports in Varna to determine the match-up in another battle for a spot in the semis. Starting at 17:30 local time, Slovenia will meet Turkiye. Three hours later, Portugal and Ukraine will take to the court to lock horns in the last of four eighthfinal matches in Bulgaria.
Slovenia lived up to the status of Pool B favorite and topped the standings on a 5-0 win-loss record, dropping only a set along the way. If they win their eighthfinal against Turkiye, they will have achieved a top-eight EuroVolley finish for the fifth consecutive time. At three of the last four European Championships, Slovenia reached the finals to collect three silver medals, their first Euro Volley podiums in history.
Turkiye’s best EuroVolley result in history was achieved two years ago, when the team finished 10th. If they manage to knock out Slovenia on Saturday, it will be a historic first top-eight result for the Turks. They made it to the eighthfinals as the fourth-placed team in Pool D, after losing to France, Romania and Portugal and beating Greece and host Israel.
The last time Turkiye was successful in the head-to-head clashes was back in 2018 when it mastered two straight-set victories over Slovenia in the CEV European Golden League to put an end to a long Slovenian winning streak in the series. Then, Slovenia produced a four-set victory, when they met at the 2019 FIVB Challenger Cup, and a straight-set shutout at EuroVolley 2019. It was the second time they met at the European Championships. Slovenia also won the first encounter in 2011, by 3-2.
Tine Urnaut"We only think about the next match against Turkiye. Nothing that happened before is important... and nothing after. We only think how to play the best possible volleyball, because Turkiye is a very good team with many, many good players. We need to give our best and fight from the first to the last point to win.”
Outside hitter and captain of Slovenia
Faik Samet Gunes"We believe that we will play a high-level match against silver medalist Slovenia, one of the most important teams in Europe. It will be a great battle. Our preparations continue. We are analyzing our opponent well; we have a coach who knows them well. We know them now because we have played many matches with them. A game for great viewing pleasure awaits us. I hope we will be the ones to advance."
Middle blocker of Turkiye
Portugal arrived in Varna as the runner-up of Pool D in Israel. In Tel Aviv, the team from southwestern Europe beat Romania, Israel and Turkiye, but lost to France and Greece to finish on a 3-2 win-loss record, edging Romania on set ratio. Portugal has never managed to repeat or improve on its result at the inaugural European Championship in 1948, when it finished fourth in the six-team round-robin tournament. Portugal is in its sixth EuroVolley participation and it is the second time it will play in the knockout stage, after making it among the eighthfinalists two years ago.
Since gaining its independence in the 1990s, Ukraine has already made seven appearances at the European Championships and the sixth place upon its debut in 1993 is still the country’s best result in the competition’s history. Ukraine started EuroVolley 2023 with three consecutive losses, to Slovenia, Croatia and Bulgaria, but bounced back with two wins, over Finland and Spain to finish third in Pool B in Varna.
In both occasions Portugal and Ukraine met previously at the European Championships, five-set battles unfolded, with Portugal victorious in 2005 and Ukraine in 2021. In between, they also met in a 2011 Olympic qualifier, when the Portuguese mastered a 3-0 shutout.
Joao Miguel Jose“The important thing has been to prepare for the match, having in mind how the pool went for Ukraine and for our team. We achieved our first two main goals: qualifying for the round of 16 and securing the best possible classification in Pool D. Our opponents are also extremely motivated and want to win as much as we do. We shouldn't have big expectations, but instead, we are focusing on taking things one step at a time."
Head coach of Portugal
Oleh Plotnytskyi“For sure, it will be a tough match. They are a good team. They have a good setter, a good opposite… We have to play at 100% to make the game maybe a bit easier for us. We want to go to Rome and our next step is the match against Portugal.”
Outside hitter and captain of Ukraine