U19 men's national team coach Miroslav Zhivkov described the three control matches against Brazil, played in Metz (France), as extremely important and beneficial. He shared this opinion with the official website of the federation. Although Bulgaria lost all three friendly matches, two of them were very contested and provided valuable answers to the staff.

Details of the three controls

First control match

• Result:2:3 for Brazil

• Bulgaria took a 2:1 lead in sets and had a 23:21 advantage in the fourth set, but the Brazilians managed to turn the game around and win the match with a tie-break.

• Miroslav Zhivkov pointed out that this match could have been won and showed the team's real capabilities.

Second control match

• Result:0:3 for Brazil

• Both teams mainly relied on their reserves, with the match serving to test the depth of their squads.

Third control match

• Result:1:3 for Brazil

• The match was again very even. After 1:2 for Brazil, our team led 23:20 in the fourth set and was close to a tie-break. Nevertheless, the South Americans closed the match in four sets.

Conclusions from the control matches according to the coach

"The control matches gave us a clear answer as to where we stand and what to focus on," Zhivkov stated to the BF Volleyball website.
He emphasized that the results are secondary, and what's more important is the dedication shown, the strong team spirit, and the discipline of the players.
"I congratulate the boys for everything they did. For first matches, there was also tension, but the important thing is that we faced a serious opponent," he added.

Continuing with the Balkan Championship

After the test matches, the national team departs tonight forthe Balkan Championship in Banja Luka (Bosnia and Herzegovina). Their first match there will be a friendly against Montenegro on Wednesday.

New additions and squad for the Balkan Championship

Three new names join the team:Petyo Ivanov, Yordan Randzhev, and Konstantin Manolov.

Full squad:

• Petyo Ivanov

• Nikolay Nikolaev

• Dimitar Dobrev

• Deyan Marinov

• Ivan Uzunov

• Yordan Randzhev

• Daniel Tiholov

• Nikola Konstantinov

• Petar Gospodarski

• Konstantin Manolev

• Nikolay Mihovski

• Martin Totkov

• Filip Martinski

• Dimitar Peychinov