Egonu 0501

Dealing with star opposite Paola Egonu will be one of Trentino's main challenges on Sunday (Photo: LVF)

After less than two weeks of work, head coach Davide Mazzanti is set to face his first challenge at the helm of Itas Trentino in the Lega Pallavolo Femminile Serie A Tigotà and it’s going to be a big one.

Sitting at the bottom of the standings, the team from Trento will go on the road against second-placed Allianz Vero Volley Milano on Sunday, at 19:30 local time (18:30 GMT), in one of the six matches of the second leg of the second round of the 2023-2024 Italian League regular season.

  • Watch Lega Pallavolo Femminile Serie A1 matches live on VBTV.

Mazzanti became Trentino’s head coach right after Christmas with the goal of leading the team in the second half of the season and avoiding relegation. Right now, they have only three points (one win) in 14 matches and have to close an eight-point gap to move outside the relegation zone.

The former Italian national team head coach will have many battles to fight with his new team and the first of them will be against one of the strongest teams in the country, who have 37 points with 13 victories and just one upset so far.

"We'll have a very difficult match on Sunday and we'll need to keep our side out solid to have a chance," Mazzanti said. "Another thing we've been working on is the ability to bounce back after making mistakes. I'm excited to start a new journey with Trentino."

When the teams met in the first round of the season, back in October, Trentino managed to steal one set from Milano at home, but couldn’t avoid a four-set loss to their opponents.

One of Mazzanti’s main goals against Milano will be helping the team stop a player he knows extremely well – star opposite Paola Egonu. The two worked together for six years at the national team and celebrated the titles of the Volleyball Nations League 2022 and the 2021 European Championship, besides winning medals in back-to-back editions of the FIVB Volleyball Women’s World Championships (silver in 2018 and bronze in 2022).

Back in the Italian League after spending the last season in Türkiye with VakifBank, Egonu has been one of the top players in the country so far, ranking first in points scored (301) and kills (249).

Undefeated in their last 13 matches, having lost just five sets in the period, Milano continue to chase league leaders Prosecco Doc Imoco Conegliano, who have 41 points (14 wins) and will host Honda Olivero S. Bernardo Cuneo also on Sunday, at 17:00 local time (16:00 GMT).

Lega Femminile - Match Schedule and Results

Three matches on Saturday

The weekend action in Italy will begin on Saturday, with three matches – Reale Mutua Fenera Chieri vs. Aeroitalia Roma Volley, at 17:00 local time (16:00 GMT), Savino Del Bene Scandicci vs. Uyba Volley Busto Arsizio, at 17:30 local time (16:30 GMT), and Megabox Ondulati Savio Vallefoglia vs. Volley Bergamo 1991, at 20:30 local time (19:30 GMT).

The last match of the weekend will have Wash4Green Pinerolo against Il Bisonte Firenze, on Sunday, at 20:45 local time (19:45 GMT). The match between Trasportipesanti Casalmaggiore and Igor Gorgonzola Novara was postponed and will be played at a later date.

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Lega Pallavolo Femminile Serie A1 Tigotà
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