The Bulgarian national team will face Poland in their third match of the Volleyball Nations League tournament in Gdansk, and news from the hosts' camp indicates serious personnel problems for the 2018 world champion.
Late on Tuesday evening, it became clear that one of 'Druzyna Polska's' key receivers, Aleksander Sliwka, suffered a right leg injury during practice. This automatically rules him out of the remaining matches of the team in the third week of the Nations League. He was supposed to play today against Iran, but now coach Nikola Grbic will be forced to rearrange the lineup.
Artur Szalpuk is expected to replace Sliwka in the rotation, although Bartosz Bednorz is also not yet fully ready to play.
Poland will face Bulgaria on Saturday, July 20, and although they have a deep bench, the latest events undoubtedly shake the team's rhythm and confidence.
Injuries continue to plague the Poles this season:
Bartosz Kurek dropped out due to back problems even before the start of the tournament;
Sebastian Adamczyk ended his participation due to a broken finger;
Rafal Szymura suffered a knee injury and returned from Chicago, just before he was replaced by Sliwka - who is now also injured.
The Bulgarian team can take advantage of the situation to seek a better outcome from the match against one of the most decorated teams in the world. Despite a tough series of matches, Gianlorenzo Blengini's boys showed that they can stand up to even the strongest opponents, and the absence of captain Sliwka from the Polish squad is a serious blow to the hosts' stability.
An intriguing match awaits us on Saturday - with a battle for every point and a serious chance for Bulgaria to achieve a landmark victory in Gdansk.
