Super sub Alan gets Brazil over the line against Ukraine

A fantastic off-the-bench performance from opposite Alan Souza helped Brazil come back from a two-set deficit and overcome Ukraine in Rio de Janeiro on Saturday, handing the Volleyball Nations League rookies their first defeat in the tournament.

Sidelined in the first two matches of the home team, the 31-year-old was instrumental in their comeback against the Ukrainians, which started the fourth day of matches at the Maracanãzinho stadium. A few hours later, Slovenia defeated the United States to continue as one of just two undefeated national teams in the event.

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Alan couldn’t help Brazil in their first two matches in the VNL 2025 as he had a back injury and kidney issues, which took him to the hospital in the last days of the team’s preparations for the opening week. Cleared to play, he was the x-factor in the South Americans’ 3-2 (19-25, 14-25, 25-22, 25-23, 15-10) reverse sweep against the Ukrainians, who had won the first two matches in their maiden VNL campaign.

Brought off the bench to replace his younger brother and Brazil’s leading scorer Darlan during the first two sets, Alan was inserted in the team’s lineup for the third set and led their impressive comeback, contributing 21 points, all in kills. Middle blocker Flavio Gualberto and outside hitter Lukas Bergmann scored 12 each.

“With the team down 2-0, I felt that we needed a different energy on the court,” he said. “I’m happy that we got to improve and win the match. Competition at the national team is always good, and it’s kind of fun that I have to challenge my brother for a spot on the team. He’s a phenomenal player, but I’m a little bit more experienced, and I think that helped me bring something different to the court today.”

Ukraine had the match’s top scorer in their first setback in the VNL 2025 as outside hitter Illia Kovalov produced 25 points (23 kills, two blocks). Opposite Vasyl Tupchii and middle blocker Yurii Semeniuk also had solid performances, with 19 and 18 points, respectively.

Slovenia continue undefeated

With Ukraine going down, Slovenia get to the end of the day on Saturday as the only team to remain undefeated in Rio and one of just two to have not dropped a match in the VNL so far. The Europeans claimed their third victory in as many matches with a 3-1 (25-22, 27-25, 20-25, 25-23) win over the United States on Saturday.

Outside hitter Žiga Štern was the most productive Slovenian player on the court, registering a match-high 15 points with 12 kills and three aces. Opposite Nik Mujanović followed up on his 30-point performance against Iran on Friday by delivering 14 (12 kills, two aces) against the Americans.

“We started the fourth set really badly, making way too many mistakes (the Americans led by 8-2),” middle blocker Jan Kozamernik reflected. “The most important thing for us was finding our rhythm in serving. After that, we put them in difficult spots, got some touches with our block, and generated counterattacks, which made things easier for us. That was the key for the entire match because they were playing smartly and not making mistakes.”

For the United States, four players got to double digits in scoring, most notably opposites Kyle Hobus and Gabi Garcia, who left the court with 13 and 12 points, respectively.

VNL 2025 – Match Schedule & Results

Brazilians and Slovenians will open the fifth and last day of action of the VNL 2025 in Rio, facing each other on Sunday, at 10:00 local time (13:00 GMT). Ukraine and Iran will play afterwards, at 14:30 (17:30 GMT), while Cuba and the United States complete the schedule at 17:00 (20:00 GMT).

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