Superlega 2023

Trentino looking to advance to the Finals on Sunday

The defending champions need to get a third win over Monza to progress – watch live on VBTV

Published 07:00, 05 Apr 2024

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Opposite Kamil Rychlicki is one of Trentino's main weapons against Monza (Photo: SuperLega)

Itas Trentino could become the first team guaranteed in the Finals of the 2023-2024 SuperLega Credem Banca on Sunday, when the defending champions enter the court in Trento at 17:00 local time (16:00 GMT) to face Mint Vero Volley Monza. After winning the first two duels in the best-of-five series, Trentino will move forward with another victory.

The semifinal series between Sir Susa Vim Perugia and Allianz Milano will also have its third chapter this weekend, but a fourth match between the teams is already confirmed after they split wins in the first two encounters. The teams will meet on Sunday, in Perugia, at 18:00 local time (17:00 GMT).

  • Watch Italy’s SuperLega Credem Banca live and on demand on VBTV.

Itas Trentino vs. Mint Vero Volley Monza

After winning the first two matches 3-0 and 3-1, Trentino will be back home on Sunday determined to get third and final win that would keep their title defense alive. The team, which has star outside hitter Alessandro Michieletto as its main scorer in the series with 34 points, is looking to appear in the Italian League Finals for the tenth time – they have five titles.

For Monza, it will be win or go home on Sunday as they need a road victory in Trento to keep the series going and potentially start a comeback against the defending champions. Canadian outside hitter Eric Loeppky registered 39 points in the first two matches and the team could have the return of his compatriot Stephen Maar from injury on Sunday, boosting their offense.

The odds for Sunday’s encounter favor Trentino as they not only won 29 of the 33 encounters involving the teams so far, but also triumphed in six of the seven most recent matches.

“We haven’t done anything yet and, in the playoffs, the most important match is always the next one. Monza has proven to be a very tough team and we don’t expect match three to be any easier than the first two.” Alessandro Michieletto – Trentino’s outside hitter
“It’s not over yet! I’m confident about this weekend because in the last match we showed we can play better. We know that across the net there will be a very strong team, but we’re taking the good things we did in the last match. We’ll fight until the end.” Gabriele Di Martino – Monza’s middle blocker

SuperLega Credem Banca 2023-2024: full schedule and results

Sir Susa Vim Perugia vs. Allianz Milano

The series between Perugia and Milano, which was one of the most electrifying of last year’s Italian League quarterfinals, had its first turnaround on Wednesday, when Milano won on the road to create a 1-1 tie between the teams.

Belgian opposite Ferre Reggers was huge for Milano, with 31 points (he scored 13 in the first match) and will be a key player for them again this weekend. For Perugia, Tunisian opposite Wassim Ben Tara, with 43 points scored across both matches, has been the leading force on offense.

Perugia have been historically successful against their rivals, with 22 wins in 31 matches, but Milano have prevailed in five of the last seven encounters.

“We’ll take a good look at the last match and will try to do better and avoid that the errors we made on Wednesday repeat on Sunday.” Massimo Colaci – Perugia’s libero
“We’ll need to make some changes and adjustments for the next match because Perugia grew a lot during Wednesday’s encounter. It was great that we won another match at home, but we expect more and the players know that.” Roberto Piazza – Milano’s head coach

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