The Slovenian national volleyball team, one of Bulgaria's opponents in the group stage of the upcoming World Championship in the Philippines, recorded a convincing victory in its first friendly match in Osaka, Japan. Head coach Fabio Soli's team defeated the local club Blazers Sakai with a 3:0 (21, 23, 19) score, and also showed superiority in the additional fourth set, winning 25:17.
Tactical experiments without Rok Mozic
The Slovenians, who reached the semi-finals of the Nations League this summer, are conducting a general rehearsal in Osaka, where they are preparing for the World Championship. Due to the absence of one of their stars – Rok Mozic – coach Fabio Soli experimented with a new playing system. Opposite Hitter Nik Mujanovic, who had already distinguished himself in training, was deployed in place of the missing Outside Hitter.
“With him, we gain power in attack and become even more dangerous,” explained setter Gregor Ropret to the federation's website, emphasizing that this option could also be used at the World Championship.
Soli himself added that the match was an opportunity to transfer the competitive rhythm to experienced players like Alen Pajenk, Gregor Ropret, and Tine Urnaut, who joined preparation later and did not have enough playing minutes in the first part of the season.
Preparation and goal – the third World Championship
For Slovenia, this will be their third participation in a World Championship. The team departed for Japan from Ljubljana on Sunday and has already managed to adapt to the time difference. Tomorrow, the Slovenians will conduct a training session, and on Saturday, they will play a second friendly match against Blazers Sakai.
Slovenia's squad for the World Championship
| Position | Players |
|---|---|
| Setters | Gregor Ropret, Nejc Najdic |
| Opposite Hitters | Tonček Štern, Nik Mujanovic |
| Middle Blockers | Alen Pajenk, Jan Kozamernik, Sašo Štalekar, Janž Janež Kržič |
| Outside Hitters | Tine Urnaut, Žiga Štern, Rok Bračko, Luka Marovt |
| Liberos | Jani Kovačič, Grega Okroglič |
The squad is balanced between experienced leaders like Urnaut, Ropret, and Pajenk and younger players like Mujanović and Marovt. It is precisely the experiment with Mujanović in reception that makes the Slovenians more flexible and harder to predict.
Slovenia is Bulgaria's second opponent in Group H of the World Championship – the match is on September 15. After an impressive fourth place in the Nations League and given Soli's tactical experiments, the Slovenians remain one of the most unpredictable opponents for our team.
photo:volleyballworld.com
