Yuki Ishikawa’s first match as a Sir Susa Vim Perugia player against his former club Allianz Milan and against his Japanese national team teammate Tatsunori Otsuka is certainly in the spotlight of the Italian men’s SuperLega Credem Banca ninth leg this weekend. But as the regular season gets closer to its midpoint, the race for the spots in the Coppa Italia competition is attracting more and more attention, especially since most teams still have reasonable shots at making the top eight in the current standings after the 11^th leg who will qualify for the national cup quarterfinals.

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With most teams still having nine points up for grabs in the upcoming three legs to midseason, even winless Yuasa Battery Grottazzolina still have a mathematical shot at the top eight. But the two teams above them in the table, Gioiella Prisma Taranto and Mint Vero Volley Monza, are within just two points of the cut-off and have very realistic chances of fighting for Coppa Italia qualification.

But let’s start from the top down. Undefeated leaders and defending champions and cup holders Sir Susa Vim Perugia, with their 22 points and an 8-0 win-loss record, are one of the two teams that have already secured a Coppa Italia spot. On Sunday, they will visit last year’s bronze medallists Allianz Milan, who are running fifth on 15 and 5-4. Matey Kaziyski and his teammates have only two games to play till midseason and are not even close to being a safe bet for the cup, especially since after their difficult match against the reigning club world champions, they will close the half-season with a difficult trip to eighth-placed Valsa Group Modena.

Out of the previous 33 SuperLega or Coppa Italia encounters between Allianz and Sir, the Block Devils have won 24 and the club from Milan has won nine, most recently the second game of their semifinal series last season, when current Sir stars Yuki Ishikawa of Japan and Agustin Loser of Argentina were still players of Allianz. Sunday’s game between the two teams, which will be spiced up by a Japanese head-to-head collision between Ishikawa and Allianz’s new addition Tatsunori Otsuka, will start at 18:00 local time (17:00 UTC).

Second-placed Itas Trentino Trento, on 21 and 7-1, have also already qualified for Coppa Italia, but in Sunday’s opening match at 17:00 (16:00), the reigning European champions will host a team looking to climb up the table and qualify as well, last season’s silver medallists Mint Vero Volley Monza. Vero Volley are now in 10^th place on 7 and 3-5, two points below the eighth-place cut-off.

An interesting race is shaping up for the third place in the table, but the teams participating in it are not sure cup quarterfinalists yet and also need to mind a potential drop down the standings. After two consecutive losses, Gas Sales Bluenergy Piacenza fell to third place on 17 and 6-2 and will now have a difficult trip to Rana Verona, who are also keen to put an end to a losing streak of three matches in a row, which brought them down to sixth place on 12 and 4-4, just three points above the red line for the cup. Verona and Gas Sales will close the leg with their game at 19:00 (18:00) on Sunday.

Cucine Lube Civitanova, on the other hand, have been on the rise and reached the fourth place, now only a point below Gas Sales, on 16 and 5-3, which is also only a point above fifth-placed Allianz. On Sunday, Lube are travelling to Gioiella Prisma Taranto for a game at 18:00 (17:00). The team from Taranto is on a three-game losing streak, which brought them down to second from the bottom, 11^th place on 7 and 2-6, but still well within reach of the top eight, two points from the cut-off.

A big duel between two neighbours in the table, Valsa Group Modena and Sonepar Padova Padua, both just above the red line, is also coming up on Sunday. Hosts Modena are in eighth place on 9 and 3-5, just a point below their seventh-placed visitors from Padova, who also stand on 3-5. The game is set to start at 18:00 (17:00).

The SuperLega competition weekend will start on Saturday, with bottom-placed rookies Yuasa Battery Grottazzolina entertaining Cisterna Volley at 20:30 (19:30). The squad from Grottazzolina (2, 0-8) is still looking for its first win in the SuperLega and probably views the visit of Cisterna as a good opportunity to get it. Cisterna, however, have won their previous two matches and climbed to ninth place on 9 and 3-6, separated from eighth-placed Modena on set ratio, a good position for attacking the Coppa Italia spots.

SuperLega Credem Banca 2024-2025 9th leg:
Nov 23, 20:30 local (19:30 UTC): Yuasa Battery Grottazzolina v Cisterna Volley
Nov 24, 17:00 local (16:00 UTC): Itas Trentino Trento v Mint Vero Volley Monza
Nov 24, 18:00 local (17:00 UTC): Allianz Milan v Sir Susa Vim Perugia
Nov 24, 18:00 local (17:00 UTC): Gioiella Prisma Taranto v Cucine Lube Civitanova
Nov 24, 18:00 local (17:00 UTC): Valsa Group Modena v Sonepar Padova Padua
Nov 24, 19:00 local (18:00 UTC): Rana Verona v Gas Sales Bluenergy Piacenza

SuperLega Credem Banca 2024-2025 schedule and results

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