The national women's under-18 team is in the final phase of its preparation for the European Championship in Greece. The team, led by Antonina Zetova, played a final friendly match against the under-20 squad, coached by Borislav Krachanov. Last week, the Bulgarian team finished second at the Balkan Championship.
"This was an exceptional event for our team," Zetova told reporters in Hristo Botev Hall. "We played really good matches. In the final, Turkey showed very high class. In it, the opponent demonstrated great improvement. This made it difficult for us, but we focused on that match during the last training sessions in Sofia. I hope we raise our level and are competitive."
In the European Championship group, we will again face Turkey. "I hope it's a very different match," Zetova continued. "But let's not forget that before Turkey, we will face Germany. Our focus is on that match. I don't want to publicly say what ranking I would be happy with. Every coach wants to be in the highest possible place. Our national psychology is such that when we start with big expectations, it doesn't affect us well. I want the girls to play well and calmly. They had very high-quality preparation. We played strong friendly matches and showed what we can do as a team. All these things need to come out when there is confidence. If uncertainty appears, things change. All the girls are present, we have no problems. The atmosphere is good."
The team departs for the island of Crete on Saturday. Our first match at the European Championship is on July 1 against Germany. The subsequent matches are against Turkey, Poland, Lithuania, Finland, Greece, and Hungary. The first two teams from the group qualify for the semifinals.