Olympiacos, with Bulgarian international Martin Atanasov in its squad, suffered its first loss in the championship after falling at home to Flisvos 0:3 (20:25, 21:25, 24:26) in a match from the third round of the Novibet Volley League.
The match in the 'Melina Mercouri' hall lasted 92 minutes and ended the streak of two consecutive victories without losing a set for the team led by Alberto Giuliani.
Flisvos once again proved to be a nightmare for the Piraeus giant. On February 4 this year, the team from Paleo Faliro delivered one of the biggest surprises of the season, eliminating Olympiacos from the Greek Cup tournament after a 3:1 victory. Nine months later, history repeated itself, this time with an even more decisive result.
An interesting detail is the presence of Rafail Koumentakis in the winners' squad. The experienced outside hitter spent eight years at Olympiacos, won numerous trophies with the red-and-whites, and now faced his former club. He finished the match with 3 points but was part of Flisvos' stable reception.
Martin Atanasov finished with 6 points, of which 4 were in attack, 1 directly from a serve, and 1 block. The Bulgarian scored 4 out of 13 attacks (31% success rate), and in reception, he recorded 40% positive and 30% excellent from 10 receptions.
Atanasov started as a starter but was substituted during the match. In comparison, in the previous championship match against Milon, he distinguished himself with 9 points and a 50% success rate in attack.
Flisvos outperformed Olympiacos in almost all key indicators. The visitors recorded a 46% success rate in attack against 38% for the hosts, won the blocking battle 9:7, and demonstrated significantly more stable reception - 62% positive against 43%.
A particularly serious problem for Olympiacos proved to be the serve. The hosts made 15 service errors in the three sets, while their opponent made 11.
The top scorer for the winners was Camden Gianni with 18 points, including 2 aces and 1 block. Casey Schouten added 16 points, and Pearson Eshenko distinguished himself with 7.
For Olympiacos, the most points were scored by American opposite Jake Hanes - 13. Spencer Heldt added 8, and Alexandros Raptis and Erik Röhrs finished with 7 each.
Flisvos started the match confidently and already in the first set led 8:6, 16:12, and 21:16, before closing the set 25:20.
The second set followed a similar scenario. The visitors had an advantage at 8:6 and 16:13, and Olympiacos failed to overcome their deficit and lost 21:25.
The third set was the most contested. Flisvos led 8:3 and 16:12, but the hosts gradually narrowed the gap and reached a tie at 24:24. However, the visitors kept their composure and with two consecutive points ended the match - 26:24.
For Olympiacos, this is a serious warning signal before the upcoming derby with Panathinaikos. Giuliani's team started the season with convincing victories over Rethymno and Milon, but against Flisvos, they showed fluctuations in all key elements.
For its part, Flisvos continues undefeated in the championship after successes over Aris and Rethymno and now has three wins from three matches.

photo: Nikolay Varadinov