Lube Civitanova have already secured a semifinals spot and could restore the order for Italy
Opole, Poland, December 14, 2017 – Cucine Lube Civitanova two-match winning start in the 2017 FIVB Volleyball Men’s Club World Championship secured them a semifinal spot that could restore the order for Italy, after missing out on the top podium in the last four editions.
Head-to-head
• Lube Civitanova and Sarmayeh Bank Teheran VC will meet for the first time at the men's club world championship.
• Italian teams are unbeaten against Iranian sides in the competition. Diatec Trentino beat Paykan Teheran twice (2009, 2010) and Kalleh Mazandaran once (2013).
Lube Civitanova
• After Tuesday’s thrashing of Sada Cruzeiro Vôlei (3-0), Lube Civitanova added a second win on Wednesday: 3-2 against ZAKSA Kedzierzyn-Kozle, with a 18-16 scoreline in the fifth set,
• Of the previous 12 men’s club world championships, the first eight, but none of the last four, have been won by Italian teams. Pool A leaders Lube Civitanova have already secured a semifinals spot and could restore the order for Italy.
•bTsvetan Sokolov ended up top scorer in the match against ZAKSA Kedzierzyn-Kozle with 26 points. With 46 total points, Sokolov is joint top scorer after two days of competition (alongside ZAKSA’s Sam Deroo).
Sarmaye Bank
• After losing a nail-biter against ZAKSA Kedzierzyn-Kozle on Tuesday, Sarmaye Bank Tehran suffered a much clearer defeat on Wednesday: 3-0 against twice reigning champions Sada Cruzeiro Volei.
• The debutants could become the third Iranian team to lose all three matches in a men’s club world championship campaign, after Paykan Tehran and Kalleh Mazandaran in 2011 and 2013 respectively.
• Mojtaba Mirzajanpour Muziraji again led his team in scoring on Wednesday (13 points). Only Lube Civitanova’s Tsvetan Sokolov (46) and ZAKSA Kedzierzyn-Kozle’s Sam Deroo (46) and Maurice Torres (40) have compiled more total points than Mirzajanpour (37) in this year’s men’s club world championship.