Simone Giannelli (right) celebrates with the Azzurri. © APA/afp / NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA

Simone Giannelli: Into the quarter-finals without a blemish

Italy's men's volleyball team has won its third group match for the second time. On Saturday, Simone Giannelli & Co. also won against Poland at the end of the group phase.

August 03, 2024

From: dl

Italy won comfortably against Poland 3:1 and thus took first place in the so-called "group of death". The Poles only managed to win the third set with 26:24. In the remaining rounds, the European champions did not get more than 15,18, 20 and XNUMX points.

Italy, which has the youngest team in this tournament, was better in every respect. Captain Giannelli (230th international match), Yuri Romanò and Alessandro Michieletto in particular were able to impress again and again and drove the Azzurri to a well-deserved victory. In the fourth set, Giannelli & Co. showed nerves of steel and did not allow any tension to build up.

Now against Japan

In the quarter-finals, Italy will now face Japan. The match will take place on Monday, but the time has not yet been announced. The hot phase is now beginning for Giannelli & Co. The Bozen native has won almost everything in his career. The only thing missing for the almost 28-year-old is an Olympic victory. In 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, he won silver.

Simone Giannelli (left) also impressed against Poland. © APA/afp / NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA

The other quarterfinals at these Olympic Games are: France against Germany, Slovenia against Poland and Brazil against the USA. One thing is certain: Italy is one of the top favorites for gold.