Reigning champion Italy clinched its spot in the final phase, and after a stunning loss to Belgium, the Italians have put to rest any doubts about their capabilities—for now.
Italy made short work of Ukraine, 25-21, 25-22, 25-18, to complete the Round of 16 cast in the FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship on Thursday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Alessandro Michieletto spearheaded the attack with 13 points on 12 hits and a block, helping world No. 2 Italy avert elimination with a 2-1 record in a virtual knockout tiebreaker against world No. 17 Ukraine (1-2), finishing second in Pool F.
Michieletto, a 6-foot-9 outside hitter, received support from Mattia Bottolo and Yuri Romano, who contributed 11 points each, while playmaker Simone Giannelli dished out 19 sets for Italy. The team will face Pool C leader Argentina in the knockout stage.
“It’s amazing to be here, to compete for our goal. We knew before we came here that our journey in this tournament would be very difficult because we’re going to face a lot of strong teams, and Ukraine was one of them. We’re happy with the result and also with how we managed our volleyball, how we played during this match. I’m very happy for both of these teams,” said Italy skipper Giannelli.
“Now we have to recover a bit and go on fire against Argentina. What they did against France was amazing, so it’s definitely going to be a difficult match for us. But we know what we want, and we want to go against them with full power,” he added.
Team captain Yuri Semeniuk and Illia Kovalov led the way for Ukraine with 14 and 12 points, respectively, in a gallant campaign.
Unbeaten Belgium, following a 25-22, 25-20, 25-12 win over a listless Algeria, swept Pool F and will face Finland in the Round of 16. Finland claimed the Pool C No. 2 seed from Olympic gold medalist France (1-2) in a surprise early exit.
France was eliminated after a 26-28, 23-25, 25-21, 25-20, 12-15 loss to Argentina, while Finland secured a crucial 25-18, 23-25, 25-17, 25-21 win over Korea to advance.
At the Mall of Asia Arena, Iran broke the hearts of host Alas Pilipinas (1-2) and thousands of Filipino fans with a dramatic 21-25, 25-21, 17-25, 25-23, 22-20 victory, marked by a match-saving net touch challenge, to advance to the Round of 16.
Iran finished with a 2-1 record in Pool A to join Tunisia (2-1), following a 25-19, 25-18, 25-22 win over Egypt (1-2). Iran will face Pool H No. 1 team Serbia (2-1), while Tunisia battles second-ranked Czechia (2-1).
Serbia’s 25-22, 25-20, 25-22 win over world No. 3 Brazil (1-2) eliminated the latter, joining fellow heavyweight France in a surprising early exit. Czechia secured the second spot after a 26-24, 25-19, 25-18 win over also-ran China (0-3) in Pool H.
World No. 1 Poland (3-0) and The Netherlands (2-1) lead Pool B, USA (3-0) and Portugal (2-1) top Pool D, Bulgaria (3-0) and Slovenia (2-1) head Pool E, while Turkey (3-0) and Canada (2-1) spearhead Pool G.
In the Round of 16 matchups, Turkey faces The Netherlands, Poland clashes with Canada, Bulgaria takes on Portugal, and the USA tangles with Slovenia.
All teams will have a short breather on Friday before action resumes on Saturday at the MOA Arena, where the Round of 16, quarterfinals, semifinals, and the one-game final will all be played.
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