Serie A1
Round 6
Latina and Verona will be the first on court on Saturday. This game will also put face to face the two top scorers of the league, Latina’s Starovic, second, and Verona’s Lasko, first. On Sunday, Macerata, still without Martino and with Savani doubtful, takes on Castellana Grotte which has to make do without five players (Cozzi, Rodriguez, Torre and Pagano injured, Cicola suspended). This will be the 62nd meeting between Cuneo and Modena, both winners in mid-week in the Champions League and Cev Cup. Berezhko and Dennis are doubtful for Prandi’s team. San Giustino heads to Roma aiming to achieve a hat-trick of victories. But Roma wants to make it four in a row. Champions League losers, Trentino, without Birarelli injured, and Treviso, are looking to bounce back in front of their home fans respectively against Vibo Valentia and Monza, which will try to interrupt a four-game losing streak. Finally, Piacenza entertains Forli.
Round 6
Saturday 27 November at 4pm
Andreoli Latina – Marmi Lanza Verona Live on Rai Sport 2
Live streaming on http://www.raisport.rai.it/dl/raisport/multimedia/diretta.html
(Braico-Boris)
Sunday 28 November at 6pm
Lube Banca Marche Macerata – BCC-NEP Castellana Grotte Live on Rai Sport 2
Live streaming on http://www.raisport.rai.it/dl/raisport/multimedia/diretta.html
(Pol-Vagni)
Bre Banca Lannutti Cuneo – Casa Modena
(Cesare-Padoan)
Sisley Treviso – Acqua Paradiso Monza Brianza
(Pessolano-Perri)
Copra Morpho Piacenza – Yoga Forlì
(Puecher-Castagna)
M. Roma Volley – RPA-LuigiBacchi.it San Giustino
(Pasquali-Zucca)
Itas Diatec Trentino – Tonno Callipo Vibo Valentia
(Rapisarda-Piersanti)
League table
Itas Diatec Trentino 17*, Lube Banca Marche Macerata 13, Bre Banca Lannutti Cuneo 13, M. Roma Volley 10, Andreoli Latina 8, Sisley Treviso 8, Copra Morpho Piacenza 7*, Casa Modena 6, Marmi Lanza Verona 6, RPA-LuigiBacchi.it San Giustino 6, Tonno Callipo Vibo Valentia 6, Acqua Paradiso Monza Brianza 4, BCC-NEP Castellana Grotte 4, Yoga Forlì 0.
*1 game more: Itas Diatec Trentino, Copra Morpho Piacenza
Andreoli Latina – Marmi Lanza Verona
PAST ENCOUNTERS: 12 (9-3 Verona)
Gianrio Falivene (President Andreoli Latina): “Verona is a very important test for us, we’ll see what we’re made of. A win would give us confidence. We know it won’t be easy, Meoni-Lasko is an excellent pair and everybody seems to understand and fit into the coach’s system. He’s prepared and competitive. It’s always a pleasure to host the GM Gabriele Cottarelli and talk volleyball with him. I hope the fans will fill the gym and enjoy the show”.
Michal Lasko (Marmi Lanza Verona): “I am sure this will be a good game. The points at stake will be worth double because we are two teams aiming to stay up. We have had a good week of work and we’ll go there with a positive spirit. The important thing is that the group keeps improving game after game and gathers points to reach our targets. It will be nice to meet Sottile again: on court each player will give its best for its team to win, but then once the last ball will touch the floor, everything will be back like last year”.
Lube Banca Marche Macerata – BCC-NEP Castellana Grotte
PAST ENCOUNTERS: 3 (Macerata won all 3)
Facundo Conte (Lube Banca Marche Macerata): “We already met Castellana Grotte in a pre-season friendly a month ago, and then they had already proved to be a balanced team, with the capacity to give a good game to anyone. I’m expecting another tough game on Sunday, difficult in every way you look at it because they will want to bounce back after their home loss against Roma. There will be important points at stake for the both of us. Our target will be to maintain the level of play and determination shown in this beginning of season, be that on the serve and in attack, areas in which we proved we had various valid alternatives”.
Radames Lattari (BCC-NEP Castellana Grotte): “It’s been a difficult week for us, we’ll have five players unavailable. We already needed a miracle against Macerata with the full squad, but now it’s almost impossible. Unfortunately, we are going through a difficult moment and we have to get over this and limit the damage. In Macerata, against one of the strongest teams of the league, we’ll perform to the maximum of our possibility, taking what is given to us”.
Bre Banca Lannutti Cuneo – Casa Modena
PAST ENCOUNTERS: 61 (33-28 Modena)
Alberto Giuliani (Bre Banca Lannutti Cuneo): “It will be tough against Modena, no doubt. This team is full of stars that are up for it. Their club have worked well this summer on the market, giving coach Silvano Prandi an excellent squad. As for us, we are working to improve our game, which is not at its best yet, but that is totally normal at this point of the season, all the more so with the way our preparation went. We’ll play with maximum focus and maximum effort and, as usual, we’ll give it our best shot”.
Loris Manià (Casa Modena): “Lately, we’ve had a few injuries too many which did not allow us to work all together, which we need to do with consistency. We’ll see who’s fit for Sunday. Cuneo is the Italian champion, it’s an extremely strong team, it will be a very tough game, but we’ll go there with our heads up and try to get a result. We are working to improve in every area of the game, our level of play can and must get better. On one hand, we have to be extremely concentrated but on the other we have to enjoy ourselves and have faith in our ability. This is the only way to play good volleyball and have a chance against Cuneo”.
Sisley Treviso – Acqua Paradiso Monza Brianza
PAST ENCOUNTERS: (4-2 Treviso)
Roberto Piazza (Sisley Treviso): “I’ll take a quote from a colleague of mine to present the game: we are two teams between sick and convalescent. For different reasons, neither Treviso nor Monza are going through a good period, so whoever wins on Sunday will have found the best remedy to go back to its best. On Sunday, we’ll see if we are capable of getting back on track and play again like Treviso should do”.
Luca Monti (Coach Acqua Paradiso Monza Brianza): “After last Sunday’s game, I am very confident. I’ve seen a team willing to work hard in tricky situations and then we played face to face with the Italian champions. Hopefully, we’ll keep going this way. As for Treviso, they seem to have problems of consistency, one day they’ll be unbeatable and the next a lot less. We’ll have to make it difficult for them and try to limit their game. We have to play with the same mentality as in the last game, if we do so, we’ll have a good game”.
Copra Morpho Piacenza – Yoga Forlì
PAST ENCOUNTERS: 7 (6-1 Piacenza)
Marcus Popp (Copra Morpho Piacenza): “I’m glad to meet Forli again, it should be a good game. They will really be up for it but so will we. We want to win like we did in the last three games. It’s been a difficult year in Forli but nice as well because we managed to stay up and I’m proud of that. Now, I see Forli as an opponent and this is a normal thing for a player. I am very curious and can’t wait to play”.
Guillermo Falasca (Yoga Forlì): “Last Sunday’s game is behind us, I don’t worry about it. This was an important one, but things did not work out. The way to come out of such situation is to work with a lot of patience. We have a good team, we just need to find our rhythm, make less mistakes, this way we’ll gain confidence. We have to fight in every game to win it. And once we’ll find our game, the points lost in the first half of championship, we can get them back in the second half”.
M. Roma Volley – RPA-LuigiBacchi.it San Giustino
PAST ENCOUNTERS: 4 (Roma won all 4)
Alberto Cisolla (M. Roma Volley): “I’m more and more convinced that I made the right choice by coming here. This group is fantastic and I’m sure we’ll do well. As for me, I’ll be as professional as ever and I’ll put maximum effort. Our team combines youth and experience: I am at the team ‘s disposal, I’ve had a few physical worries in the last few month, but fortunately nothing serious, I can still play at my best. Hopefully, I’ll recover very soon in order to train and play with more consistency. If we look at the numbers, we’ve had a good start to the season: we’re a bit disappointed we have thrown a few points away, but we’ve also clinched sets that seemed lost. We’re still not performing as well as we would like to but this is due to the fact we still have to find our understanding with the setter and in reception. On the other hand, we’re doing fine on the serve, in attack and at the net. We have to face San Giustino with determination without thinking of the coming games. We should have our chance, but we can’t afford to lose our focus. Then, on Wednesday, we’ll host Trento before travelling to Cuneo next Sunday. If we want to trouble those teams, we have to play with more intensity and cut down on silly mistakes, because they punish you straight away and it’s impossible to recover”.
Andrea Sartoretti (Sport Director RPA-LuigiBacchi.it San Giustino): “Roma is composed of extremely experienced players, like Lebl, Cisolla and Corsano, and interesting youngsters. A nice mix that make Giani’s starting six one of the top half of the league. It is better structured than ours, they’ve had a good start to the season, but we know we are capable of playing well and we really want to show what we can do”.
Itas Diatec Trentino – Tonno Callipo Vibo Valentia
PAST ENCOUNTERS: 14 (12-2 Trento)
Raphael (Itas Diatec Trentino): “The game against Vibo Valentia is always special for me, this is the team that brought me in Italy, it is thanks to them that I know the country and the Serie A1. I am very grateful to the president and the whole club because I’ve spent beautiful seasons, even if I totally feel like part of Trentino now and want this victory at all cost. We have to put the Lodz defeat behind us and the best way to do so is to get immediately back to winning ways. We’re playing a lot of games right now, we don’t have time to think of what has been, we just need to look ahead. I am expecting a very tough game because Vibo is on the way up and has a particularly effective serve. The fact that two great teams like Roma and Treviso were beaten by them should be enough for us to be extremely careful”.
Fabio Fanuli (Tonno Callipo Vibo Valentia): “We are perfectly aware of the fact we’re facing a very complicated game, especially If Trento plays at its usual best. We’ll give it a fight in order to get something out of it. We are improving, but we know what kind of team we’ll have on the other side of the net. So let’s keep our feet on the ground, whatever comes our way will be a nice bonus. Our main strength so far came from the combination serve-block-dig; I think we are currently one of the best teams at the net. Trento definitely has the best attack of these last three-four years, so we’ll try our best to play our game”.
Serie A2
Round 8
The 8th round will start at 11.30am on Sunday as usual, with Città di Castello versus Reggio Emilia, both tied with 12 points in the league table. Clash of giants between Montagnani’s Padova team hosting Sora with three important points at stake to keep chasing league leaders Ravenna, which take son Genova. Gela’s PalaLivatino is looking like a fortress, still undefeated, it hosts Santa Croce, which is currently second and will be without Dutch Jan Willem Snippe, operated at his left Achilles this week. Perugia entertains Volley Segrate, which had spiker Bruno Temponi back in the last game. Mantova will try to get back on track after four games without a point as it faces Loreto, which leapfrogged its opponent of the day last week thanks to its second tie-break victory in a row. Milan targets three more points, after the ones gathered in the derby against Segrate, against Club Italia. Finally, Pineto will be looking for its second win of the season as it takes on Isernia, led by spiker Giulio Sabbi.
Round 8
Sunday 28 November at 11.30am
Gherardi SVI Città Di Castello – Edilesse Conad Reggio Emilia Live on Sportitalia 2
(Venturi-Bertoletti)
Sunday 28 November at 6pm
Pallavolo Pineto – Geotec Isernia
(Cappello-Marchello)
Pallavolo Padova – Globo Banca Popolare del Frusinate Sora
(Simbari-Florian)
Marcegaglia CMC Ravenna – Carige Genova
(Frapiccini-Piluso)
Canadiens Mantova – Energy Resources Carilo Loreto
(Goitre-Prati)
Eurogroup Gela – NGM Mobile S.Croce
(Gelati-Prandi)
CheBanca! Milano – Club Italia A.M. Roma
(Guerzoni-Guarneri)
Sir Safety Perugia – Volley Segrate 1978
(Perdisci-Valeriani)
League table
Marcegaglia CMC Ravenna 19, NGM Mobile S.Croce 18, Pallavolo Padova 18, Globo Banca Pop. Frusinate Sora 17, Edilesse Conad Reggio Emilia 12, Gherardi SVI Città Di Castello 12, Carige Genova 12, CheBanca! Milano 11, Eurogroup Gela 10, Geotec Isernia 8, Energy Resources Carilo Loreto 7, Sir Safety Perugia 7, Canadiens Mantova 6, Volley Segrate 1978 5, Pallavolo Pineto 4, Club Italia A.M. Roma 2.
