The Bulgarian national U19 men's team finished in sixth place at the World Championship in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. In their last match of the tournament, Miroslav Zhivkov's boys lost to Italy 1:3 (25:21, 19:25, 19:25, 20:25) in the battle for fifth place.

Strong start, but instability after the middle of the sets

The Bulgarian team started confidently and took a 1:0 lead after 25:21. In the second set, the "cubs" held the initiative until 16:15, but then there was a decline in play - defensive errors increased, and the block was not effective enough. A block against Marinov ended the set - 19:25 and the score was tied.

The scenario was repeated in the third set. Bulgaria was again even until the 15th point, after which the Italians strengthened their serve, and our reception and defense faltered. The libero showed hesitation, and a inaccurate set by Totokov after a saved ball brought 19:25 and a second consecutive set for the "Azzurri".

Attempted resistance in the fourth set, but without energy

The beginning of the fourth set was again not in our favor. Substitutions brought temporary balance, but after the 10th point, the team seemed discouraged. There was a lack of drive and desire to win. An ace by Marinski brought our team closer at 18:20, but a service error and a block against the tired Velichkov led to 18:22. Two more errors from our side followed and the match ended with an attack out.

Match Statistics:

• Attacks: Bulgaria - 46, Italy - 55

• Blocks: 9:6 in our favor

• Aces: 4:5

• Points from opponent's errors: 25 for Bulgaria, 30 for Italy

• Total points: 84:96

Individual Standouts:

• Velichkov was the top scorer for Bulgaria with 25 points, followed by Marinov with 11.

• For Italy, Giani (14 pts) and Argano (9 pts) stood out.

In Defense:

• Bulgaria with 41 digs (saved balls), against 50 for Italy

• Reception: 78 for Bulgaria, 68 for Italy

• Setting: 91 successful sets against 99 for the opponent
  
  Individual Statistics:
  

  No.	Last Name	Position	Total Points	Attack	Block	Ace	Errors	Efficiency %
  3	Velichkov (c)	Outside Hitter	25	22	3	0		26.79
  7	Marinov	Diagonal	11	10	0	1		-5.56
  2	Nikolaev	Center	6	5	1	0		-6.45
  19	Manolev	Outside Hitter	5	4	0	1		-10.00
  22	Totkov	Center	5	1	3	1		-19.35
  33	Marinski	Diagonal	4	3	0	1		20.00
  21	Mihovski	Center	2	1	1	0		20.00
  9	Uzunov	Setter	1	0	1	0		-8.70
  14	Tiholov	Libero	0	0	0	0
  17	Konstantinov	Outside Hitter	0	0	0	0
  20	Petkov	Setter	0	0	0	0
  99	Peychinov	Diagonal	0	0	0	0		0.00

  
  
  photos:volleyballworld.com