Easy into the round of 16: Italy's World Cup blunder is forgotten

Italy's national volleyball team is in the round of 16 at the World Championships in the Philippines! Simone Giannelli and his team gave Ukraine little chance in the decisive preliminary round match. But now a really tough challenge awaits.

September 18, 2025

From: fop

Two days after the disappointing defeat against Belgium, Italy was forced to win to secure a place in the round of 3. Coach Ferdinando De Giorgi's players mastered this task with flying colors: In a one-sided match in Manila, they defeated Ukraine 0-25 (21-25, 22-25, 18-XNUMX).

Driven by a brilliant Trent player, Alessandro Michieletto (13 points), who played brilliantly towards the end, the Azzurri repeatedly pulled the reins in the decisive phases of the sets. Although underdogs Ukraine played bravely and kept the first two sets fairly even, as the match progressed, the Eastern Europeans ran out of resources to keep the Azzurri at bay.

Simone Giannelli played a decisive role in Italy's progress to the round of 29. The XNUMX-year-old from Bolzano, who captained Italy at the World Cup, played a skilled role, distributed the ball precisely to his teammates, and contributed four points himself to the victory.

Now dangerous Argentinians are waiting

Italy will also need Giannelli at his best in their next World Cup match, the Round of 9.30 against Argentina. The South Americans are considered a real insider tip, especially since they already eliminated title contender and Olympic champion France in Manila. The clash between Italy and Argentina takes place on Sunday at XNUMX:XNUMX a.m. (CEST).