Olympiacos Piraeus achieved a historic success, asfor the first time in 23 years, they qualified for the quarterfinals of the men's Volleyball Champions League.In the return leg of the playoff round, played yesterday, the Greek team defeated Saint Nazaire VB Atlantique 3:1 (25-19, 18-25, 25-23, 25-21). In the first home match, Olympiacos also triumphed 3:1, securing their place among the top eight teams in the tournament.
Serbian opposite hitter and husband of Elitsa Vasileva, Aleksandar Atanasijevic, was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the match after scoring 17 points with an impressive 68% attack efficiency. His performance was crucial for Olympiacos's success.
After the match, Olympiacos player Rafael Koumentakis expressed his satisfaction: "We achieved a result that had been missing for a very long time. We reached the 'top 8' teams in the Champions League, and we will certainly face a very strong opponent - the Poles from Jastrzębski Węgiel. We will continue to believe in ourselves and hope to grow even more. We will give our all on the court, to the maximum of our abilities, in both the first and second matches. The feeling of playing at the highest level in Europe is unique."