The coach of Bulgaria welcomed Yuasa's choice to sign the Bulgarian outside hitter.
Grottazzolina – imagine a hot Saturday evening in June, a car journey, and heavy rain on the outskirts of Milan. It almost sounds like the beginning of a novel, but instead, at that moment, we connected with Gianlorenzo "Kiko" Blengini, former coach of the "Azzurri" and Lube Civitanova, and currently the coach of the Bulgarian national team. Having returned to Italy a few hours earlier, after finishing his participation in the VNL, Blengini was driving home, and just outside Milan, the road was wet after a severe storm. Our call came as he had stopped under an overpass along with other people caught in the storm, waiting for it to decrease in intensity, allowing him to continue his journey to reach his native Turin.
We take the opportunity, given his great friendliness, to ask him a few things about Yuasa Battery concerning the near future. Their paths have crossed several times in recent years – Blengini and Grottazzolina have met in many summer friendly matches when he was the coach of Lube. This wasn't long ago – the last four years (since 2021), after six seasons as coach of the Italian men's national team.
Our first questions obviously lead to the latest transfer – the Bulgarian outside hitter Georgi Tatarov, born in 2003, about whom Blengini says: "Georgi played 12 matches under my leadership in the VNL. I think he was undoubtedly one of the busiest young players, considering I always started him. He is certainly among those who have shown the fastest growth, and this is inevitably a result of his great maturity. He has a capacity for work and commitment that is unusual for a boy his age. And these qualities, combined with great progress and intelligence in the game, mean that if he continues on the path he has taken, he can become a truly important player. He is very serious, fits well into the team. He is brave, ambitious, but also very well-disposed towards others – so much so that he treats even older people like me, who am from a different generation, with great maturity."
Hence these complimentary words from the current Bulgarian national coach, who is very happy that one of the national team debutants he coaches can have the rare and valuable chance to try out in one of the most competitive leagues in the world: "We will continue our preparation together in the national team throughout July, after which I will leave him in the excellent hands of Massimiliano (editor's note: Ortensi), with whom we shared some ideas in recent weeks, and I am happy that he can train in a team like Grottazzolina's."
Blengini also commented on other matters related to Tatarov's new club, concluding by wishing Yuasa Battery and his protégé national player success.
