Poland braces for a grudge match against defending champion Italy in the FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship semifinals on Saturday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
World No. 1 Poland aims to exorcise the ghosts of the past against Italy, which ended its three-peat bid in front of a home crowd in the 2022 final.
Determined to bring that gold back to Poland is Wilfredo Leon, who missed the last World Championship due to a knee injury.
But it won’t be an easy task for Leon and his teammates as they face Italy, led by reigning Best Setter and MVP Simone Giannelli.
“[They’re] one of the biggest opponents that we always have. Every team wants to play against Italy. This is something that will give you more emotions. It’s always a pleasure for the Polish team to play against Italy because both teams are very high level, and in the rankings, we are first and second,” Leon said.
“Italy shows what we need to work on. It’s not that one team is better than the other. If you let the other team get too far ahead in points, you’re in trouble. The key is to stay in the game all the time, even if you’re one point behind, and fight for every ball.”
Poland is chasing World Championship gold after winning the Volleyball Nations League and finishing as runner-up in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
“For sure, a very tough opponent, top level, so both teams are going to play the best volleyball they can, and the better team is going to win,” said VNL MVP Jakub Kochanowski.
The Polish squad is also looking forward to facing Italy in front of an enthusiastic Filipino crowd.
“It’s nice, very nice. As the tournament goes on, more people come, and the atmosphere gets better and better. So I expect that in the semifinals in a couple of days, it’s going to be quite a nice show and quite a nice experience for us and for our opponents,” Kochanowski added.
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