Today, Thursday 26 December at 6pm in the city of Verona, Antonov and his teammates will challenge Radostin Stoytchev's strong team.
Grottazzolina/Porto San Giorgio – A dream Christmas is what the Yuasa Battery managed to give itself by virtue of the two consecutive victories which arrived in the presence of Monza and Modena, and which brought the Marche team the beauty of six points in the seven day period. However, it will also be a Christmas on the bus, because the Super League knows no stopping and the calendar has put Rana Verona in front of Grottazzolina right on the “boxing day”, with the kick-off set in the Verona city for 6pm on Friday 26 December .
The opponent of the moment
The team entrusted to the “commander” Radostin Stoytchev, on the Venetian bench since 2019 and for the second year supported as title sponsor by the prestigious Giovanni Rana pasta factory, is probably among the worst opponents that could happen at the moment. An almost constant process of growth for Verona, which however this year is extremely enjoying the “alien” performances of its main offensive player, namely the Malian Noumory Keita, who in the first leg literally drove the Yuasa Battery crazy for the the entire course of the match. A couple of numbers are enough to identify the extraordinary moment of form that Verona is experiencing: in fifth place with 25 points under its belt, only one less than Lube and Piacenza who simultaneously occupy the third step of the provisional podium, the Stoytchev's yellow and blue team have lost only to the very champions of Perugia in their last five matches, in the fifth set, otherwise picking up only full spoils. The last away defeat was in Monza, which dates back to 17 November. Compared to the first leg, Rana has fully recovered Rok Mozic, contracted until 2027 despite the rich market requests; instead, he will have to do without Dzavoronok, the victim of a serious knee injury that will most likely keep him out for months. So make room for Sani, who did very well in the first leg at Grottazzolina, with the alternative of being able to divert Keita to place four with Jensen opposite, a circumstance also exploited at PalaSavelli in the first leg match.
The situation at Yuasa Battery
Grottazzolina can finally smile, after the direct clash brought home in Lombardy against Monza, an exploit against a big team was missing, and the three points arrived on Sunday against Modena are an important injection of self-esteem for a group that had spent an entire first round to suffer and count the absent. The eight points scored allow Ortenzi's boys to abandon last position but, above all, to send an important signal of “presence”, despite the knowledge that the journey will be very tough until the end. Verona is probably a prohibitive opponent on paper, but Modena was too and one of the most beautiful certainties in sport is that we start from 0-0 and that no one, especially in the Super League, can consider themselves certain of winning. A clear mind therefore for the Yuasa Battery, who will try to do exactly what they did in the last two matches, that is, stay attached to the match and the opponent, with the aim of taking advantage of their opportunities, if there are any.
Precedents, former players and referees of the match
Rana Verona and Yuasa Battery Grottazzolina facing each other for the eighth time in Serie A. The result is 5 wins to 2 for the Scala team, including the 3-0 at home in the first leg. Fedrizzi the only ex on duty, in Verona in the 2012/13 season. Match entrusted to the all-Roman refereeing duo of Serena Salvati and Stefano Cesare.
The voices of the protagonists
Massimiliano Ortenzi, coach (Yuasa Battery Grottazzolina): “We must go to Verona with the desire to carry with us the attitude of the last two matches, adapting if they were to get ahead but aware that we can recover and also take breaks. We will have to do something more than in the first leg, where we gave up a bit in the first and third sets, willing to endure if Keita were to go on a positive streak but also careful to play our best Volleyball.”
Radostin Stoytchev, Rana Verona coach: “For the match against Grottazzolina there are two aspects to consider: the first is the importance of the match after the victory against Cisterna; getting points is not a given, because Grottazzolina takes advantage of it as soon as the opponent lowers his level or concentration and manages to play well. The second is that they have strong hitters, so we will have to receive well to keep their serves and to have a good construction in the ball change phase and prevent them from entering the series. Obviously our serve helps us, because if we keep them away from the net this favors the break point phase. We have a few days, but we have to stay focused and prepare for the match as best we can.”
How to follow the race
Live TV streaming su VTVB (Volleyball TV).
Updates on the official social profiles Yuasa Battery Grottazzolina and Rana Verona.
