The head coach of the Bulgarian men's U18 national team, Miroslav Zhivkov, has announced the extended squad for the preparation before the European Championship, which will take place from July 7 to 18 in Porto San Giorgio and San Benedetto del Tronto, Italy.
In the group stage of the championship, the young "Lions" will face France, Belgium, Czech Republic, Spain, Germany, Romania, and the Netherlands.
As part of their preparation, the national team will also participate in the Balkan Championship in Montenegro, which will take place from June 25 to 29. The tournament will be an important test for the team's condition before the European Championship.
Bulgaria U18's preparation is taking place at "Arena Samokov".
Extended squad of Bulgaria U18:
Setters:
Nikola Velikov — CSKA
Dimitar Kopanarov — Pirin Razlog
Petar Antonov — VASK
Piotr Marinov — Levski Sofia
Outside Hitters:
Nikola Gradinarov — Beroe
Orlin Drumev — Dobrudzha
Georgi Kochev — Beroe
Milko Bagdasarov — Arda
Martin Karabashev — Arda
Kayio Pavlov — VASK
Antoan Veselinov — Slavia
Opposite Hitters:
Kristiyan Ivanov — CSKA
Veselin Kokalov
Beroe
Pavel Dzhenevel
Beroe
Nikita Choban
Levski Sofia
Middle blockers:
Yasen Georgiev
CSKA
Adrian Ganev
Levski Sofia
Georgi Dimitrov
Levski Sofia
Kristiyan Kosev
Rakovski-Sevlievo
Denislav Kirov
VASK
Daniil Racho
Levski Sofia
Libero:
Ivaylo Donov
Levski Sofia
Aleksandar Dikov
Beroe
The extended squad includes 23 players. Levski Sofia and Beroe have the most significant presence, which demonstrates stable work in the academies of both clubs at this age group. The upcoming Balkan Championship will give the coaching staff an opportunity to assess the team's playing style and finalize the squad for the European Championship in Italy.
