Vero Volley Monza recorded their ninth loss of the season in the Italian SuperLega, after falling at home to Rana Verona with a decisive 0:3 (20:25, 12:25, 25:27). The team from Brianza failed to seriously challenge the visitors, with the only intrigue being in the third set, which ended in extra points.
The first two sets were entirely dictated by Verona. The visitors dominated in blocking (1/8 in favor of Verona) and attack, while Monza had serious problems with reception and game organization. The second set turned into a true struggle for the hosts – with only 12 points scored.
In the third set, Monza showed more character and managed to stay competitive until the very end, but Verona's class once again prevailed – 27:25 and a clean victory for the visitors.
For Monza, the top scorer was Krisztian Padar with 10 points, the only player with a double-digit tally for the hosts.
Martin Atanasov finished with 9 points, including 1 ace and 1 block, and was among the more active players in attack.
The other Bulgarian in the squad – Zhasmin Velichkov – only got a chance to play in the third set but failed to score.
In Verona's ranks, Noumory Keita played a strong match – 15 points and 2 aces.
Rok Mozic added 13 points and 1 block, while Darlan Sousa contributed 9 points, including an impressive 3 aces. Verona's powerful serve proved to be the second decisive factor in the match's outcome (4/7 aces in favor of Verona).
After this match, Monza remains with 12 points and occupies 8th place in the provisional standings, as their run of poor results continues.
On January 11, Martin Atanasov and Zhasmin Velichkov will have a tough away game against Piacenza, where they will look to break their negative streak and gain more game confidence.
