On Thursday, March 20th local time, the second leg of the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals between Perugia and Monza (Italy) was held, with Perugia winning 3-1 (25-18, 23-25, 25-14, 31-29). As a result, Perugia, who also won the first leg 3-1, has qualified for the Final Four to be held in Lodz (Poland) in May.
Perugia was rallied by the huge support of their home crowd. Having won the first match 3-1, they needed to win two sets to qualify for the Final Four.
From the first set, Perugia pulled away from Monza with their high success rate of spikes and blocks, and their aggressive serves despite making mistakes. In particular, OH Ishikawa, who started for the first time in five games, scored 8 points from the first set, with an attack success rate of 801 TP and 3 T, and Perugia took the lead with a score of 25-18.
In the second set, Monza managed to win the set 23-25 thanks to the efforts of MB Abel and OP Schwartz. However, in the third set, Perugia's powerful serves came to the fore. OH Plotnicki and OP Ventala each hit multiple aces to overwhelm Monza. In the end, OH Plotnicki's bullet serves hit the Monza court, winning the set with a large margin of 25-14, and Perugia advanced to the Final 4.
The fourth set, which became a dead end, started with both teams replacing most of their players. Monza, who scored mainly from OH Roers, maintained the lead from the beginning of the set and the match progressed. OH Ishikawa started on the bench at first, but entered the court as a replacement for OH Plotnicki towards the end of the set. Monza was leading by three points at 21-24 and had the first set point, but OH Ishikawa first got a side out with a spike to make it 22-24, and then assisted consecutive breaks with his own serve and receive, bringing the score to deuce at 24-24.
After that, it was a battle of side-outs, but this time OH Ishikawa stopped MB Avril with a block, and Perugia finally had a match point at 28-27. From there, it was a battle of side-outs again, but at 30-29, OP Herrera's strong serve gave OH Ishikawa a break chance, and he blocked out to make it 31-29, leading Perugia to a 3-1 victory.
Ishikawa Yuki was the undisputed MVP of the match, scoring the most points of both teams with 19 points (18 attacks, 1 block), with an attack effectiveness rate of 481 TP3T, and an 821 TP3T success rate in serve reception, which had been a struggle this season.
It is likely that S. Giannelli intentionally entrusted many of the tosses to OH Ishikawa, who often matched up against S. Creling (Cachopa) who was in the low block at Monza, but he lived up to the team's expectations brilliantly.
I also think that the comeback he made after coming on as a midway through the fourth set was truly something that could be called the Ishikawa Theater.
Of course, not only OH Ishikawa, but also OH Plotnicki and OP Ventara were able to see the typical Perugia game development this season, with their serves hitting the ball. When multiple Perugia players get on the serve, it's really impossible to stop them. It's too brutal.
It was also a nice move by coach Lorenzetti to replace L. Coraci, whose serve reception was not so good, with L. Piccinelli midway through the second set.
However, in the 4th set, OH Chanchotta had many chances but couldn't make the attack. Good luck! (Your serve was really good)
Of course, the Monza players also fought well. They played a dignified game with their best members in the Champions League, which has no foreign player quota. I would have liked to see more of this combination of MB Avril and S Cachopa in the league, but this was Monza's last game of the season, as there are no playoffs.
Although they did not advance to the Champions League semi-finals and lost the match, the refreshing expression of OP Schwartz on the bench, who was caught by camera during the fourth set, was impressive. It is expected that the members will change completely next season, so I am looking forward to seeing what kind of team they will be.
Perugia, who advanced to the Final Four, will play in the semi-finals against Halkbank Ankara (Turkey), who they lost to in the group stage, on Friday, May 16th. They will then play in the final or third place match on Sunday, May 18th. Tickets for the 16th are still on sale at the following website.
https://www.ebilet.pl/sport/sporty-druzynowe/liga-mistrzow-w-pilce-siatkowej
However, the semi-finals have been split over two days, Friday and Saturday, and the Polish teams Zawiercie and Jastrzebski, who will play on Saturday, have complained that it is unfair. This is despite the fact that the women's semi-finals are held on the same day. As is often said about the Spring High Volleyball Tournament, I hope that such schedules will be as fair as possible and that the players come first.
Either way, it will be great to see Perugia, and Yuki Ishikawa, back in his home country of Poland, specifically in Lodz, where he won the silver medal at last year's VNL.
The Champions League is a tournament that decides the top of Europe, and winning the title is an honor greater than winning a domestic title. There is no doubt that the venue will be in a festive mood. I hope that everyone in Japan will be able to experience this excitement on site.
Photo: cev.eu
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