Cucine Lube Civitanova continues its flawless run in the Italian SuperLega. The team of brothers Aleksandar and Simeon Nikolov achieved their fifth consecutive victory, after crushing Allianz Milano of Georgi Tatarov 3:0 (25:18, 25:19, 25:14) in an away match from the fifth round of the championship.
With this success, Lube accumulated the maximum 15 points from five matches and at least temporarily topped the standings, overtaking Perugia, who has 14 points before their match today against Trento.
The match at the "Allianz Cloud" hall became the final dress rehearsal for Lube before the Italian Super Cup tournament, which will be held on November 14 and 15 in Parma.
Aleksandar Nikolov finished with 11 points, 10 of which were from attack and one ace. After an impressive 35 points against Modena in the previous round, the Bulgarian international did not need to bear the main burden in attack this time. With his current tally, he now has 98 points since the start of the season and is only two away from the 100-point mark.
His younger brother Simeon Nikolov once again orchestrated Lube's game and distinguished himself with 6 points – 3 from attack, 2 from block, and one ace. The Bulgarian setter continues to impress with his active participation not only in organizing attacks but also in scoring points.
For the hosts, Georgi Tatarov appeared as a substitute in all three sets, contributing one point from attack. The Bulgarian receiver was used in rotation by coach Guillermo Falasca but could not change the course of the match.
The most effective scorer for the winners was Giovanni Maria Gargiulo with 13 points, including one ace and one successful block. Erik Loeppky also scored 11 points, impressing with 5 aces. Mattia Bottolo added 9 points.
For Milano, the top scorer was Basil Derome with 15 points, 13 of which were from attack, one block, and one ace. Robertlandy Simón and Tommaso Ichino finished with 5 points each.
Lube demonstrated serious superiority in serving, scoring 10 aces against only 2 for the hosts. The visitors also had a significant advantage in reception – 54% positive against just 30% for Milano. It was the stable reception that allowed Simeon Nikolov to organize diverse attacks and effectively use all his attackers.
The third set was particularly indicative, in which Milano led 8:7, but a true display of strength followed from the visitors. Lube won the remaining part with an impressive 18:6 and closed the set at 25:14.
The entire match lasted only 72 minutes, which further emphasizes the categorical superiority of the team from Civitanova.
The victory also has additional value for Giampaolo Medei's proteges. Lube ended a streak of three consecutive losses in their away matches against Milano in the regular season. In the last three campaigns, the team had not even won a point in these matches, although in the 2024/25 season they achieved success in Milano in the playoffs.
Now the attention of the Nikolov brothers and their teammates turns to Parma, where on November 14 at 7:00 PM Bulgarian time they will face Verona in the semi-final of the Italian Super Cup.
In the other semi-final, Perugia and Trento will face each other, and the winners will determine the trophy holder on November 15.
Lube has won the Super Cup four times, but most recently in 2014. Now the team will try to end a 12-year wait for a fifth trophy in the competition.
With five consecutive victories, excellent form from the Nikolov brothers, and an impressive performance in all elements, Lube arrives in Parma as one of the serious contenders for the trophy.