Maritsa (Plovdiv) head coach Ahmetdjan Ershimşek expressed confidence that the team is prepared for their last match in Group E of the Women's Volleyball Champions League, which could prove crucial for the "yellow-blues" to continue their participation in European tournaments.
On Wednesday, the Plovdiv team will visit Levallois Paris Saint Cloud (Paris) in a hugely important match, as the winner will guarantee progression in the European club tournaments. Currently, both teams have an equal record of 4 points each and are directly competing for third place in the final standings.
"We focused on our mistakes and worked to clear them up"
Ershimşek emphasized that after their last tournament match, Maritsa focused its attention on weaknesses in their game and worked specifically on them.
"After our last Champions League match, we focused on the mistakes we made and worked on clearing them up. I believe we are ready for tomorrow's match," the coach told the club media.
The Turkish specialist was adamant that there was no need for additional speeches in the locker room because everyone on the team fully understood the stakes of the upcoming match.
"Everyone on the team is aware of how important the upcoming match is. There's no need to explain it to provide additional motivation to the players," he added.
"Levallois is a strong home team, but we have the quality to beat them"
Ershimşek did not hide that he expects an extremely difficult task against the French team, which has already shown stability at home against serious opponents.
"We are aware that it will be a very difficult match. So far, Levallois has won both of its home matches against strong opponents. However, I believe that we have the quality to beat them," added Maritsa's coach.
Calmness and fight - the key for the "yellow-blues"
According to the coach, the most important thing for Maritsa will not be so much the calculations, but the performance on the court in the match itself. He pointed to the desire to fight and mutual support as key requirements he wants to see from his players.
"From the very beginning, we set a goal to qualify for second or third place in the group. At the moment, however, the most important thing is how we will perform on the field tomorrow. When we do our job as we should, the result will come," commented Ershimşek.
And he added:
"I want to see from my players the same desire to fight that they showed in our last match and the same mutual support. Yes, the match is very important, but we must remain calm."
When and where to watch the match?
The Levallois - Maritsa match is on February 4 (Wednesday) at 9:00 PM Bulgarian time in the "Marcel Cerdan" hall in Paris and will be broadcast live on Max Sport 2.
photo: Nikolay Varadinov
