The coach whom the newly appointed Bulgarian national team selector Marcello Abbondanza intended to invite to his staff surprisingly accepted an invitation from another federation, it became clear today. Ahmetcan Erşimşek – the name that, even during Abbondanza's appointment as head coach of the women's national team, was circulated as a future assistant in the 'Lions' staff – took a completely different direction. The Turkish specialist will not work with the Bulgarian national team but will be part of the coaching staff of the Dutch women's national team.

During his initial presentation, Abbondanza clearly stated that he intended to offer the Turk to become his assistant. The Italian even revealed that he had discussed the matter with another Italian national team coach – that of Canada's women's team – Giovanni Guidetti, who simultaneously coaches VakıfBank. It was there that Erşimşek was an assistant this season and established himself as one of the most sought-after specialists in this role.

However, instead of ending up on the bench for Bulgaria, Ahmetcan Erşimşek accepted an offer from the Dutch Volleyball Federation and will be Felix Koslowski's new assistant coach for TeamNL Volleyball Women. This was announced on the federation's website. He thus replaces Erik Meijer, who is stepping down from the position to fully concentrate on his work as Head of Training Process at Nevobo.

The decision is also indicative of the competition for high-level personnel. Currently, Erşimşek is the head coach of Maritsa (Plovdiv), and his resume includes eight seasons as Giovanni Guidetti's assistant – at VakıfBank, as well as with the national teams of Turkey and Serbia. Interestingly, Guidetti himself has a direct connection to the Netherlands, having coached the women's national team in the period 2015–2016.

The irony of fate is that the future coaching duo in the Netherlands has already clashed from opposite sides of the net. In early December, Koslowski and Erşimşek faced each other in the Champions League, with SSC Palmberg Schwerin defeating Maritsa in Plovdiv by 3:2 sets.

For Bulgarian volleyball, however, the essential point remains – the specialist who was discussed as a key figure in the staff of the women's national team will not work with Bulgaria. Instead, he chose the Netherlands, and the question of who will join Abbondanza on the bench remains open and increasingly relevant.

photos: Nikolay Varadinov, CEV andvolleyballworld.com