I recently went to watch the European Champions League Final Four, a tournament to decide the strongest club team in Europe, held on April 29th and 30th. This was my second time watching the Final Four since the Berlin tournament two years ago. I was hoping that at least one Polish team would advance, but in the end, the lineup consisted of two Italian teams (including the host team), Russia, and Germany.
Semi-final 1
Zenit Kazan (RUS) vs Berlin Recycling Valley (GER)
3-0 (25-21, 25-22, 25-13)
Starting lineup (counterclockwise from position 1)
Kazan: MB Volvich, S Butiko, WS Anderson (USA), MB Gutsaljuk, OP Mikhailov, WS Leon (CUB), L Verbov
Berlin: S Zukowski (CRO), WS Schott, MB Viglas (CAN), Carroll (AUS), WS Crom, MB Okolic (SRB), L Perry (AUS)
I don't remember much about the game because I didn't get enough sleep the night before (actually, I fell asleep during the match). But my impression is that Berlin did better than I expected. Or rather, it would be better to say that Kazan wasn't that great. Mikhailov and Leon in particular looked out of form, so Anderson did his best (the middle was practically invisible on the offensive side). On the other hand, I think Berlin's libero Perry did a good job of digging. He's almost the same age as Ishikawa, but he's amazing.
Mikhailov's serve
Semi-final 2
Sil-Sicoma-Colusi-Perugia (ITA) vs Cucine-Rube-Civitanova (ITA)
3-2 (25-19, 22-25, 25-19, 21-25, 15-9)
Starting Lineup
Perugia: MB Bilarelli, S De Cecco (ARG), WS Zaitsev, MB Podrascanin (SRB), OP Atanasevich (SRB), WS Bulgar (AUT), L Bari/ Tosi
Civitanova: MB Stankovic (SRB), OP Sokolov (BGR), WS Koval, MB Candelaro, S Christenson (USA), WS Juantorena, L Grebennikov (FRA)
The host team of this tournament, Perugia, won the close match with the support of a large cheering squad. Civitanova boasted outstanding stability in Seria A (in fact, they won the league championship after this tournament), so this result was unexpected. It seemed that Civitanova was not so good, rather than that Perugia was good. Perugia's Star Zaitsev also started off strong, but there were many scenes where he was blocked by a lot of inconsistencies. Also, although it was a full set, there was a point difference in each set, so it wasn't very exciting. However, Dececco's back attack was thrilling.
3rd Place Match
Cucine Rube Civitanova (ITA) vs Berlin Recycling Valley (GER)
3-1 (29-27, 22-25, 25-21, 25-21)
Starting Lineup
Civitanova: MB Chester, S Christenson (USA), WS Juantorena, MB Stankovic (SRB), OP Sokolov (BGR), WS Chebuli (SVN), L Grebennikov (FRA)
Berlin: S Kooner, WS Schott, MB Viglas (CAN), Carroll (AUS), WS Crom, MB Okolic (SRB), L Perry (AUS)
I was a little worried about Slovenia's Cheburj, so I was happy to see him in the starting lineup, but he didn't do very well. Instead, Carol was godlike until the second set, and it reminded me of the Final 4 in Berlin two years ago (at that time Berlin beat Scura and came in third). However, the world of competition is not easy, and from the third set onwards the difference in strength became apparent, and before I knew it, Civitanova won and came in third. However, I think Berlin did a good job with that lineup. The final bronze medal point was a service ace by Juantorena, which was also super cool. Come to think of it, libero Grubenikov was hitting the ball straight down during spike practice before the match lol.
Stankovic's quick
Finals
Silvio Coliseo Perugia (ITA) vs Zenit Kazan (RUS)
0-3 (15-25, 23-25, 14-25)
Starting Lineup
Perugia: MB Buti, S Dececco (ARG), WS Zaitsev, MB Podrascanin (SRB), OP Atanasevich (SRB), WS Bulgar (AUT), L Bari/ Tosi
Kazan: MB Volvich, S Butiko, WS Anderson (USA), MB Gutsaljuk, OP Mikhailov, WS Leon (CUB), L Verbov
Kazan was strong after all. Only in the second set did Perugia's reception work well, which allowed them to play well, but in the other sets Kazan's serves were powerful. Leon was especially amazing in the third set, getting three aces in a row. And I felt sorry for Bulgar, who was constantly targeted in those scenes. I couldn't watch it. Kazan's three players on the side were scoring well, while Perugia's was Zaitsev's solitary struggle, and I thought that if Russell (USA) had been there, it would have been better. But if I could be greedy, I would have liked them to win at least one set. That was the kind of excitement that was expected of the final.
Watch the video here
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