CEV Women’s European Championship 2019 - hosts Turkey, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia

    This is all true but this is because both teams advanced earlier so you expected emotions like in the final or what? All in all they all made it to 1/8..

    Quote from 7UP

    This is all true but this is because both teams advanced earlier so you expected emotions like in the final or what? All in all they all made it to 1/8..

    No, not this way. Not emotions but game style.

    Italians didn't have to work hard to win with Poland but they had to play much harder to loose it. IMO Poland was not equal opponent for them yesterday. 2nd and 3rd set were just awesome by Italians. If they would win these sets with much lower points distance, then I would have some doubts does this match was lost by purpose, but too many facts are "against" fair winning by Poland.


    Italy is so good that they don't have to be afraid of any opponents until semis. Russia is not so good as few years ago and if they will play as good as yesterday in the middle of the match, they will win easily. And starting from 1/8 some emotions will appear :D

    You know, following your mindset Serbia could also lose against Turkey, they are not scared of any opponent so.................................... But for some reason they did not even if it is hard to say they played 100%.


    Poland plays this way all the time - they won 2 sets easily against Turkey, then easily lost, the same against Dominican Rep., Brazil, USA, Serbia, Thailand, they just have big ups and downs so it is not that weird that Italy won easy 2 sets - this happens to Poland all the time.

    Quote from 7UP

    You know, following your mindset Serbia could also lose against Turkey, they are not scared of any opponent so.................................... But for some reason they did not even if it is hard to say they played 100%.


    Poland plays this way all the time - they won 2 sets easily against Turkey, then easily lost, the same against Dominican Rep., Brazil, USA, Serbia, Thailand, they just have big ups and downs so it is not that weird that Italy won easy 2 sets - this happens to Poland all the time.

    Why Serbia should lose?

    As someone said here, to be champion you have to be able to beat any teams anyway and beat them at all matches. So let's say ok Italy was unbothered and lost kind of on purpose.


    That kind of attitude can in the later stages be fatal to them and be their losing point, while the Polish fighting spirit could work the opposite way. :whistle:


    Lost is lost.

    Quote from beri

    That kind of attitude can in the later stages be fatal to them and be their losing point, while the Polish fighting spirit could work the opposite way. :whistle:

    Kind of agree. But Polish male NT lost on purpose with France during last WCH 2018 because they know that they will not win it anyhow, so all forces were put into 2nd next match with Serbia. Just an example... I'm writing this because I consider Italians as very strong team and they don't have to worry about yesterdays match at all.

    Quote from 7UP

    And why Italy should?

    I wrote that I don't know the purpose. Maybe they wanted to push Poland to easier opponents, maybe they wanted to make happy the audience or maybe they interpreted the rule wrong way and were sure that they will avoid Russia in 1/4? I don't know. As I'm watching volleyball for so many years and know strengths and weaknesses of all of the teams so my personal opinion is that Italy lost 5th set for purpose.


    So I'm asking about your theory, why Serbia should loose to Turkey?

    Quote from WZP

    I wrote that I don't know the purpose. Maybe they wanted to push Poland to easier opponents, maybe they wanted to make happy the audience or maybe they interpreted the rule wrong way and were sure that they will avoid Russia in 1/4? I don't know. As I'm watching volleyball for so many years and know strengths and weaknesses of all of the teams so my personal opinion is that Italy lost 5th set for purpose.


    So I'm asking about your theory, why Serbia should loose to Turkey?

    My personal opinion is like yours - on purpose but I don't know why.


    They did not play 100% that's for sure because it was not semifinal, final or what but talking they lost on purpose is really strange. Against Belgium Italy played much worse and still won 3-0. They did not care about the match either and were doing stupid mistakes, just Belgium could not use it.

    Quote from 7UP

    My personal opinion is like yours - on purpose but I don't know why.

    Not this way.

    I didn't watch mentioned match and don't know what happened there. Italians had some aim to loose to Poland, it's clear for me, but I don't know what led them to do this. You should support your theory about SRB-TUR with some argues. For me 3 service errors in a row, 3 reception mistakes, smiles and happiness during 5th set are enough. Maybe you should hear it directly from Italian coach/players to believe, I don't need it.

    But the signs you are talking about are normal - the match had no real point because both teams advanced so why should they care - they just played without stress, emotions what ever. Polish players also kept smiling to Italians especially Wolosz. IT WAS NOT THE FINAL men....


    If you have any valid argument, please share it because this loss caused:

    - need to travel to Slovakia for one match then coming back and then possibly flying to Turkey

    - getting worse draw in QF and SF


    Unless Italian players wanted to do sightseeing in Slovakia you are wrong.

    Quote from 7UP

    But the signs you are talking about are normal - the match had no real point because both teams advanced so why should they care - they just played without stress, emotions what ever. Polish players also kept smiling to Italians especially Wolosz. IT WAS NOT THE FINAL men....

    I didn't mean these smiles. I meant smiles of Sorokaite after 3rd reception error in tie-break, when Italians were gathering together and Mazzanti after service errors, especially Sylla's. Players doesn't behave this way when they loose points (except Efimienko).


    Quote from 7UP

    If you have any valid argument, please share it because this loss caused:

    - need to travel to Slovakia for one match then coming back and then possibly flying to Turkey

    - getting worse draw in QF and SF


    Unless Italian players wanted to do sightseeing in Slovakia you are wrong.

    Really?

    Traveling from Łódź to Bratislava is 1,5 hour flight "man..." and Italy would have loss 0:3 or 1:3 to get better drawing and stay in Łódź. After they won 2 sets they didn't care at all. If this ECH would be in Poland only and Italians will have to travel from Gdańsk to Kraków, they would have similar distance as Łódź-Brastislava so transfer argue is fully invalid for me.

    I don't see how Italy's loss decided their opponent in the QF? As the winners of group B, they were always projected to play against the runner-up of group C, which is Russia.

    The only thing that's changed is that, had they won, they would stay in Lodz instead of going to Bratislava. And that Poland now has a much easier opponent in the 1/8 finals - Spain instead of Russia.

    Actually, the team that's screwed over the most with this scenario is Belgium.

    Had Italy won, Belgium would have played against Slovakia and then Germany, and would have decent chances to reach the semis. Now, their path is Russia -> Italy, and it's nearly impossible.

    Quote from WZP

    I didn't mean these smiles. I meant smiles of Sorokaite after 3rd reception error in tie-break, when Italians were gathering together and Mazzanti after service errors, especially Sylla's. Players doesn't behave this way when they loose points (except Efimienko).


    Really?

    Traveling from Łódź to Bratislava is 1,5 hour flight "man..." and Italy would have loss 0:3 or 1:3 to get better drawing and stay in Łódź. After they won 2 sets they didn't care at all. If this ECH would be in Poland only and Italians will have to travel from Gdańsk to Kraków, they would have similar distance as Łódź-Brastislava so transfer argue is fully invalid for me.

    Had Italy won 3-2 they would have stayed in Poland too.

    Quote from WZP

    Really?

    Traveling from Łódź to Bratislava is 1,5 hour flight "man..."

    Plus the time it takes to pack and get from the hotel to the airport. Like Joana mentioned there`s no flights to Bratislava, so the bus ride from the city they arrive to Bratsilava....they will waste a whole day for this 1.5 h flight.....while Serbia will be at their hotel resting.


    And then Italy will waste a whole another day to get back to Lodz....and again Serbia will be at their hotel resting.


    Then Italy will have to pack again and head to Ankara, will take a whole day to get there again......while Serbia will be resting at their hotel.


    I`m team Serbia all the way.... But this schedule is really not fair with anyone. 3 days of rest for Serbia/Turkey and 3/2/1 day of travel for everyone else.

    The only reason Italy would have lost on purpose would be to avoid Serbia in the semis. But for that to happen they would need to lose in 3-4 sets, but that was not their plan since they won 2 sets. Unless they were stupid enough not to realize if they won 1 point they would finish in first place.

    This is the prize for finishing first in your group.

    I hate volleyball