The Bulgarian men's U22 national team showed that they could challenge the reigning European champion France, winning the first set, but ultimately lost 1:3 (25:22, 16:25, 15:25, 19:25) in their second match from Group II of the European Championship in Portugal. Thus, the young "Lions" recorded their second consecutive loss in the tournament and, before the final day, remain without a win and have practically said goodbye to their medal dream.
The Bulgarian team started the match inspired and set their tempo early on. After a block, a French error, and a successful attack by Zhasmin Velichkov, our team took a 14:11 lead. After 15:13, the lead was extended to 18:13, and subsequently to 21:16. The Bulgarians did not allow their opponent to return to the set, and after a service error by Noah Defflo-Rossi, they closed the set with 25:22.
The second set started evenly until 5:5, but then the French significantly raised their serving level. This element unsettled the Bulgarian reception and led to a series of unforced errors " a total of 12 in that set alone. France gradually built up a solid lead, and after an ace by Noah Defflo-Rossi, they leveled the score.
The third set also started point-for-point, with Bulgaria maintaining equality until 10:10. After that, the European champions again pressured with their serve, scored 4 aces, had an advantage in attack, and capitalized on many Bulgarian errors. The set concluded with a decisive 25:15 after a "drawer" ace. By this point, Bulgaria had already accumulated 29 unforced errors ", more than one gifted set.
The fourth set unfolded in a similar scenario. The game was even until 5:5, but then France again pulled away by three or four points and did not allow a comeback. The European champions closed the match with a successful block against Kostadin Kozelov for the final 3:1.

The statistics clearly show why France achieved success. Bulgaria compensated with better reception and an equal number of blocks, but the six aces against two, higher attack efficiency, and especially the 39 points that came from Bulgarian errors, decisively tipped the scales in favor of the European champion. Zhasmin Velichkov was the top scorer for Bulgaria with 15 points, including 2 blocks and 37% attack success rate. Kostadin Kozelov added 13 points, of which an impressive 5 blocks, finishing with 73% attack efficiency. For France, Noah Defflo-Rossi scored 10 points, including 2 aces and 1 block, and was among the players who broke the Bulgarian team with his strong serve. In their last group stage match tomorrow, Bulgaria will face the Czech Republic. After two defeats, our team occupies last place in the group without a win. France is the leader in the standings and on the final day will contend with Italy for first place in the group.