Magical semi-finals to provide drama at CEV EuroVolley 2023 Women

It cannot get any bigger than this. For the first time in history, the four semi-finalists at the CEV EuroVolley Women enter the court after seven-game winning streaks, with Italy, Türkiye, Serbia and the Netherlands being unbeaten in this edition of the European premium competition.

Something has got to give, though, as two of these sides will face their first loss, while the two others will continue their dream of winning the title, with only Türkiye searching for their maiden trophy at the CEV EuroVolley Women.

There will surely be drama and emotion, but also some magical moments in the Palais 12 in Brussels in the start of the final weekend of the competition, as the four semi-finalists for the previous edition are faced with the same situation right now, albeit switching opponents – in 2021 Italy won against won against the Netherlands, 3:1, while Serbia beat Türkiye with the same scoreline.

While Italy are the reigning champions and ride a 17-game winning streak at the CEV EuroVolley, dating back to 2019, they have lost their last three matches against Türkiye, a friendly in September 2022, and two other matches in the summer in the FIVB Volleyball Women’s Nations League, both in straight sets.

That “bete noire” feeling is also amplified by the most recent games at the CEV EuroVolley between the two powerhouses, with Italy winning six out of eight matches, but conceding two losses in the last two matches played in this competition, in 2011.

“We know how good Türkiye are, they have dominated us in the Nations League, but we are stronger now and we have a mission, to win this game and the European trophy,” says Italy’s captain, Myriam Sylla.

Another subplot of this clash between the two powerhouses is that Türkiye have an Italian coach, in fact a former assistant for Davide Mazzanti. Daniele Santarelli definitely knows his opponent well, but this challenge will be the highest he faced so far, especially in such an emotional setting. 

“We will face a crazy good team, they are excellent. However, I also have some very good players, the experience here has been incredible,” says Santarelli, who only had three months to prepare for this competition.

With two gold medals in 2017 and 2019 and a lost final in 2021, against Italy, Serbia have been one of the most consistent sides at the CEV EuroVolley Women over the last years. In fact, one has to go back to 1993 to find a team which delivered four consecutive finals, with the Soviet Union dominating the sport back then.

Serbia are one step away to clinch their fourth consecutive final berth, with a rematch of the final in 2017 standing between them and glory, a tough match against the Netherlands, one of the most impressive sides and one of the dark horses of the CEV EuroVolley 2023.

The Dutch side tied their best-ever start in the competition, with seven wins in a row, achieved in 2009, when they finished on the second place, losing the final against Italy, 0:3. Yet the challenge is huge, needing a win against a side which won 31 of the last 32 matches at the CEV EuroVolley.

With 163 points, Tijana Boškovic has shined for Serbia so far, being the best scorer between the players who reached the final round, showing signs of brilliance throughout the whole competition. But Serbia will need more of her in this setting, in one of the toughest matches so far in this edition