Although a little late, I was able to watch and cover the Milan vs. Piacenz match held in Milan on May 3rd, so I would like to write about it here.
Unfortunately for Ishikawa, this was his last match of the season in Italy.
Transportation from the airport to the venue
First, I will leave Warsaw, Poland, where I currently live, and head to Milan, Italy.Italy for the first time in two yearsis!
If you are going to Milan from JapanMalpensa AirportI think most people use it, but this time I got off atLinate AirportIt is smaller than Malpensa Airport, but it is convenient because it is close to the city center. If Malpensa Airport is like Kansai International Airport, Linate Airport is like Itami Airport.
Home of Power Valley MilanoAllianz CloudTo get there, you just need to take the regular bus and subway.2€You can get there in just under an hour.
The travel time from Malpensa Airport is not much different, but the price is higher because you will need to transfer to an express train or shuttle bus.10~15€It takes time.
The nearest venue isLotto Fieramilanocity StationAnd it's about a 5-minute walk from there.
Arriving at the venue
Arrived at Allianz CloudAround 8 p.m. local timeThe match started at 8:30 p.m., so I wanted to arrive an hour before, but I ended up arriving late due to various reasons. Still, I'm grateful that I was able to get there. But starting the match at 8:30 p.m. is typical of Italy.
Once inside, you'll see bright blue tarps and orange courts!
And our very own YUKI ISHIKAWA!!!
It was the first time I'd seen him play in Italy since seeing him play against Trento in Padua two years ago. Now in his seventh season with Italy and having experienced the Tokyo Olympics, it felt like he had grown even bigger.
By the seventh season, it's natural that he's "there." During his first time at Modena, he didn't have many opportunities to play, and it felt like he was "studying abroad," but now he's not only a valuable player, but also a force to be reckoned with.The team's key playerSo, it's amazing.
During the warm-up, Ishikawa was stronger than the other players.There were lots of smiles and I felt relaxed..
The match on this day was the final qualifying match for the 5th place deciding match, which was contested by the 6 teams that placed 5th to 10th in the regular round. If they placed 5th, they would be eligible to play in the next season.CEV Challenge CupThis will allow them to qualify for the European Volleyball Confederation's tournament, which Milan won last season.
Their opponent, Piacenza, had already qualified with one final match remaining, but if Milan won they would advance, but if they lost they would be eliminated depending on the result of another match that was being played at the same time.Literally on the brink.But they had a 1-1 record in the regular season, so they have a chance.
By the way, the setter of Piacenza,Brizard (France)is my personal favorite setter. I introduced him in a previous article.
I never dreamed that he would later become a starter and win the Tokyo Olympics (laughs).Serve and block are also strongHe is a very troublesome setter to face.
By the way, Piacenza had two other French players, Rossard and Puyol, and Milan also had two French players, Patri and Cinenieze, so this matchFrench DerbyI think it's fair to say that there were a lot of French players on both teams (laughs). There are a lot of good French players.
By the way, the number of customers was sparse compared to the number of boats, butThe atmosphere at the venue was warm.is.
Match Report
Well, while we were doing this, the match started.
Starting members
Milan: S Porro, OH Ishikawa, MB Chinenieze (France), OP Patry, OH Jaski (USA), MB Mosca, L Pesaresi
Piacenza: OH Recine, MB18 Kanesi, OP1 Lagunzia (Türkiye), OH Russell (USA), MB Chester, L Scanfera
*Players without parentheses are Italian.
Milan's captain and starting middle blocker (MB) Piano was absent due to a back injury (he was on the bench), and Piacenza was also without starting middle blocker Holt (USA).
1st set 25-20
Milan's setter (S) Pollo starts with a serve.
The first set was completely Milan's pace, starting off with a 3-0 lead over Piacenza.
By the way, the third point isIshikawa's left-handed push into the back of the opponent's courtThe first point was a deep push, you can see the court so well, it's amazing.
This set,Milan was serving well.
Although they didn't have many aces, they were able to focus serves on the opposing outside hitter (OH) Russell, disrupting the reception and successfully breaking through with their characteristic defense.
In particular, when OH Recine dropped back, he was always replaced by receiver Catania under the special rule that allows Italian players under the age of 21 to switch positions as many times as they like, so if he could successfully disrupt Russell on the diagonal here, the only toss option would be the opposite (OP).
Milan took advantage of these situations to gain the upper hand in the game.
Ishikawa also scored two pipes towards the end of the set.He was in top form, scoring 7 out of 8 attempts with a success rate of 88%.It was.
2nd set 27-29
In stark contrast to the previous set, the second set was a close match.
Milano was leading again at the start, so I was thinking carefreely, "Maybe I can win in straight sets today, and I can go home early (lol)."
However, the joy was short-lived as Piacenza's serves were aggressive and they closed the gap in points. In particular, Milan's OH Jaskier was targeted and his reception was disrupted.
While Milan's attack success rate dropped, Piacenza's attackers were improving their form.In particular, OP Lagungia lived up to the team's expectations and scored a large number of points with his spikes and serves.
Milan was still slightly ahead and the game went to deuce, but Piacenza managed to turn the game around with an ace from Lagunzia. Milan fought back with a skillful feint from Ishikawa, but Piacenza took the set back with a final Lagunzia hit.
3rd set 23-25
The third set was a seesaw battle from the beginning.
However, even in this set, Piacenza was able to attack effectively with their serves, even though they didn't have an ace.Milano was unable to find a break from serve.
While Piacenza's Russell's serve reception has become more stable and his attack success rate has improved, Milan's Jaskier is struggling with both serve reception and attack.
Nevertheless, Milan were the first to reach 20 points, scoring points mainly from OP Patri and MB Chinenyedze.
I wanted to keep going like this, but the ball hit the opponent's block and came back.It was like a match-making session, with the ball falling flat on the Milan court and allowing Piacenza to turn the game around.
In the end, Lagungia blocked Ishikawa's attack, and Piacenza won the set as well.
Fourth set 25-19
Until the middle of this set, too, Milan was helped by some mistakes from Piacenza's attackers and extended their lead to 10-7, so the mood was building and it was going to go to a full set.
But this is where hell begins.
Porro's serve hit the net and the score was 10-8.Piacenza's MB Kaneshi fires off big serves.
Ishikawa also made an uncharacteristic mistake, hitting the ball into the net while attempting a third overhand return, and as a result, Piacenza turned the match around with five consecutive breaks, including two service aces, to take a 13-10 lead.
I was so surprised by the unexpected situation that I was completely unable to think (lol).
Meanwhile, Milan coach Piazza replaced Jaskier with Jokic (Switzerland), and then made two other substitutions, bringing on OP Romano and S. Dardello, looking for a way to turn the game around, but Milan's serves were all going wrong and they were unable to get any break chances.
Then, as if to add insult to injury, Kaneshi's serve erupted again, and with two consecutive breaks, including an ace that bounced off Ishikawa's arm, Piacenza pulled away to a six-point lead at 23-17.
Finally, Russell scored a spike from the left to end the game.Piacenza won 3-1.
As a result, Piacenza was confirmed as having qualified in first place, while Milan had to wait for the results of other matches, but was unfortunately eliminated from the qualifying round due to the difference in set ratio. As a result, this match was the last match of the 2021/22 season for Milan and Ishikawa.
Thoughts etc.
on second thoughtsThe key to modern volleyball is the serveIt was a match that made me realize once again that it is important to attack effectively with serves and put the opponent out of the system (a state where the attacker has fewer options), and if you have a big serve, you have the power to turn the game around even if you are only a little behind in points.
Boys and girls who love volleyball, let's hone our serves (lol).
Regarding his impression of Ishikawa, when he saw him in Padua two years ago,The serve is crisp and very aggressive.However, Ishikawa in Milan was much better than he was then.CraftsmanshipHe is a truly exemplary player, and can change roles depending on the team.Truly an all-round playerI was reminded of this once again.
Takahashi is on the diagonal for the Japanese national team, so I think his role will be similar to what he had at Padua, but I can't help but fantasize a little about what will happen in the future (laughs).
Also, the players I saw and was interested in wereOH Recine from PiacenzaAlthough he is small at 185cm, he used his outstanding jumping ability to score at key moments and also got three service aces. He was like a "right-handed Nishida." He is just as tall as Yanagida, so I wonder if Yanagida could still be on the Japanese national team if he had this jumping ability.
Recine's tattoos on both arms were also impressive (laughs).
This was my first time watching a volleyball game in Italy in two years (my 13th game overall).
Of course, due to the influence of COVID-19, masks were mandatory and spectators were not allowed to enter the court freely after the game to interact with the players, so there were some disappointing aspects, but I'm glad I came to watch!
Originally, I had planned to have both Nishida's Vibo and Takahashi's Padova advance to the playoffs so that I could watch them both, but that wish was not fulfilled (I especially wanted to see Nishida, but Italy will not be there next season...).
butI'm really glad I was able to see at least Ishikawa's match.I really wanted to see them win, but maybe next time. Ishikawa will be in Milan next season (Nishida, why don't you follow your senior and stay in Italy?).
What kind of team will they be next season, and what kind of Ishikawa will they show us in Italy?
With this in mind, it was past 11pm and the streets of Milan had already fallen completely dark, so I left the venue feeling a bit scared (lol).
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