What happens at the opposite position for Lube if the very likely departure of Adis Lagumdzija after the end of the season materializes? This question is posed by colleagues from the Italian publication "Resto del Carlino", Macerata. Nikolov's good performance as an opposite in the Italian Cup final, combined with the form and synergy of the Botolo and Loepki reception duo, who are already starters in coach Medei's system, convince Lube's management that the replacement for the Bosnian with a Turkish passport is already available in the team, the journalists from the media are sure. This is likely to be precisely Nikolov. "Carlino" has been supporting this possibility for months, considering the difficulty in reception for the son of the famous volleyball player Vladimir Nikolov, born in 2003, and at the same time his strength in attack.
"It is true that an opposite must have a different set of hits than those of a receiver, but we strongly believe that Alex has all the talent (and time) to become great at the opposite position as well," predict the colleagues. Furthermore, it is not so rare in volleyball for an athlete to be successfully experimented in another role.
In Lube itself, this happened with Omrčen, purchased from Cuneo, where he played as a middle blocker, but then became a devastating opposite (he was already doing so in the national team). If this happens, as it seems, Lube will provide continuity to the project after the extensive summer reorganization, which is a wise and advantageous move, at least judging by the team's current, steady growth. For future new additions, they may limit themselves to just one correction in the fours position, choosing the fourth outside hitter. Unless it is decided that the other young player - Poria, should go "to gain experience" on loan to another club, where he would find more playing time. Dirlik can continue to fulfill the role of reserve opposite, a task he performs well both in terms of attitude and in terms of usefulness and quality of performances when he enters the game.
Lagumdzija's contract is expiring and, according to the information we have, he has received irresistible transfer offers from Turkish and Russian clubs. Lube has offered the player a renewed contract with a reduced salary. The official motivation is that this is a matter linked to the club's policy of cost reduction, but we would not want there to be anything else behind this, i.e. that Civitanova is not so satisfied with the opposite's performance. It was in Bologna, in the final against Verona, that Nikolov replaced him after numerous errors, and in two seasons in the red-and-white jersey Lagumdzija has already failed in other important matches as well," concludes the article in the Marche region publication.
photos: Nikolay Varadinov
