Polish Aluron CMC Warta Zawiercie qualified for the Final Four of the Champions League after defeating Cucine Lube Civitanova 3:0 (25:22, 25:18, 26:24) and closed the series, having also won cleanly in the first match away in Italy.
The match in Sosnowiec practically ended after the second set, when Michał Winiarski's team secured their progression. From that moment on, both coaches Winiarski and Gianpaolo Medei gave a chance to the reserves, which logically lowered the intensity in the third set.
Zawiercie played maturely and extremely disciplined in the first two sets, where they not only held the initiative but systematically put Lube under pressure.
| Indicator | Zawiercie | Civitanova |
|---|---|---|
| Aces | 3 | 1 |
| Attack points | 26 | 22 |
| Blocks | 3 | 4 |
| Points from opponent errors | 18 | 13 |
This is exactly where the difference lies. The Poles won significantly more points from opponent errors 18 against 13, which is indicative of their constant service pressure and stable defense. They also had an advantage in attack, and the only element in Lube's favor blocking was not enough to tip the balance.
At the most crucial moment, Zawiercie got exactly what a team at this level needs distributed offensive efficiency.
Karol Butryn scored 10 points in the first two sets, and Bartosz Kwolek added 8, with both being fundamental to the hosts' offensive stability.
For Lube, Mattia Bottolo also reached 10 points, but Aleksandar Nikolov remained with 8, which limited the attacking variability of the Italian team.
After 2:0 in sets, the intrigue disappeared. The third set 26:24 was more evenly matched, but also lower in quality due to numerous rotations. In reality, qualification was already decided. With the elimination of Civitanova and Aleksandar Nikolov, as well as Bogdanka Lublin with Alex Grozdanov, Bulgaria remains without a representative in the Final Four of the tournament.
In Turin, we will see the semi-finals:
Zawiercie Ziraat Bank Ankara
Jastrzębski Węgiel Perugia
