Bulgaria set to play in men’s Olympic semi-final – Volleyball News
Men’s national volleyball of Bulgaria secured the Olympic semi-final spot by defeating Germany at the Earls Court on Wednesday.
The team coached by Nayden Naydenov demonstrated a stellar feat and held off Germans for 3-0 (25-20, 25-16, and 25-14) victory. Bulgaria qualified for the Olympic semis for the first time since 1980.
Tsvetan Sokolov played an instrumental role in Bulgaria’s success in the match. He added match-high 22 points, while Nikolay Nikolov and Todor Aleksiev finished with 11 points apiece. On the other hand, Germany had only one player with double-figure score
of 12 in the form of György Grozer.
Bulgaria opened the match on a high note and pressurised the rivals with an early onslaught of volleys. Powerful serves coupled with solid cross court shots enabled Bulgaria to take a healthy lead in the first set. German attackers attempted to poke the
ball on Bulgarian side, but faced a lot of resistance. Triple blocks of Bulgarian players killed their attacks on the net. In the meantime, Bulgaria added quick points and secured first set at 25-20.
Germans came up with a new plan in the second set and hit back aggressively. They managed to put Bulgaria in chase for a short time, but could not carry the same momentum. Bulgaria used the back row attack and went up. Germany finished the second set with
16 points, while Bulgaria claimed set points.
Bulgaria dominated the scene in third set and settled for match victory after sending 25-14 on board.
"First of all the team was in normal condition and not thinking about the problems we had before coming. We tried for the team to think not about what was happening off court, but only that on court, only about volleyball. We want to teach them that when
they play as a team with heart, then anything is possible. To go to the semifinals of the Olympic Games, this hasn't happened for us since Moscow, 32 years ago,” said Bulgaria coach Nayden Naydenov.
Meanwhile, German mentor Vital Heynen congratulated Bulgarian team for their great win. He openly acknowledged the better status of opponents. The Captain Bjorn Andrae was disappointed after his side lost the match. According to his, Germany
couldn’t find its real form to overcome Bulgaria.
Bulgarian team will be back in action on Friday as it is scheduled to meet Russia in the semi-final match. Russia defeated Poland in the quarterfinals and joined the semis.
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