Even with some of the big names still busy on the pitch or on the bench with their respective national teams, the time has come for the Superlega Allianz Milano team to get together and start preparing.
Between Wednesday and Thursday the players went to the club headquarters for the usual collection of the material. First to show up was new signing Matey Kaziyski, MVP of the last Superlega season, followed by Marco Vitelli, then the rest of the team: the captain Matteo Piano, Paolo Porro, Damiano Catania, Nicola Zonta, Andra Innocenzi and Luca Colombo. Petar Dirlic will join the group at the end of the European Championships, instead they will reach Milan only after the Ishikawa, Loser, Mergarejo and Reggers Olympic qualifying tournaments. Until now, the summer of coaches and players involved with the national teams has been truly exciting. Porro, Vitelli and Catania returned to Milan with the gold medal won at the Chengdu Universiade around their necks, “Yuki” became Asian Champion with Japan and was named MVP of the continental competition, “Agu” Champion of South America with his Argentina, winning a title against Brazil since 1964.
After Friday and Saturday dedicated to medical check-ups and functional assessments, followed by the company’s medical-physiotherapy staff, sweating will begin on Monday 4 September in the spaces of the Powervolley Academy in the former Lido area of Milan. Absent at the moment coach Roberto Piazza, the assistant Nicola Daldello and the scoutman Paolo Perrone, the first sessions will be directed by the athletic trainers Giovanni Rossi and Andrea Delvecchio, while for the technical phase the team will be followed by the coaches of the Diavoli Rosa of Brugherio, in particular Davide Delmati (1st coach of the A3 series) and Gianluca Marchini (coach of the Diavoli Power youth team).
The first open-door technical session is scheduled for Monday 4 September at 5 pm in the Powervolley Academy structure. Free access also Tuesday and Wednesday at the same time (5-7pm), when training will be managed by Nicola Daldello as part of the break from commitments with the women’s national team.
On Thursday 5 September, as on every Thursday of the month, the team will move to the Sandro Pertini sports center in Cornaredo for special training days involving athletics, swimming and beach volleyball. The Devils A3 series team will also be present in Cornaredo. The joint training program for the pre-season has yet to be defined in detail.
