Wilfredo Leon (mvp of the last edition) spikes against Resovia Block at Berlino 2015

ph. cev.lu

Trento, April 14th, 2016

For Trentino Diatec the date with the Final Four in 2016 CEV DenizBank Volleyball Champions League is getting closer: between Saturday 16th and Sunday, April 17th in Krakow (Poland) the team Champion of Italy will attack the European title that already held exclusively between 2009 and 2011.

The main information relating to the other three semi-finalists of the Tauron Arena.

CUCINE LUBE CIVITANOVA (Italy)

For the Company from Marche this is the fourth participation in the Final Four of the Champions League in ten editions played; the last time it happened in Prague in 2009 when to stop them in the semifinals it was Trento, against whom will play a new semi-final on Saturday night. On their walls is placed a trophy: the one won in Opole in 2002, in Poland, its debut in the competition, where among the ranks of Red-White historic victory against Olympiakos Piraeus, already shone the name of Ivan Miljkovic. After that success the best results in the maximum European competition have been two placings in fourth place in 2007 (Final 3rd/4th place lost against Dinamo Moscow) and 2009 (Final 3rd/4th place lost against Iskra Odintsovo). Since then (except for the lack of participation in the 2010-11 season that saw the triumph of Marche in the Challenge Cup) the Red-White exited three times during the Playoffs 12 (2009-10 from Bled, 2013-14 from Piacenza and 2014-15 from Belchatow) and 2 times at the Playoffs 6 (2012-13 from Cuneo from and 2011-12 from Trento).

 ZENIT KAZAN (Russia)

It’s the great favorite of the eve, reaching the Final Four as defending champion (the last edition ended in Berlin it adjusted to 3-0 in the final Resovia, that this time will be in the semi-finals) and won two of the last four editions: the former continental successful ever in Poland but in that case in Lodz in 2012.
Besides, come to Krakow strong even after winning its eighth Championship, the third consecutive, obtained by ensuring the regular season of the Russian Super league (this season does not provide playoffs) well in advance: for a day by the end there are fifteen points ahead of Dynamo Moscow. The backbone of the team still coached by Alekno, is almost identical to last year, with the addition of a most experienced setter (Butko). The stars of the first magnitude are therefore the opposite Mikhaylov, the US spiker Anderson and especially the Cuban phenomenon Leon, former MVP of last year.

From six seasons has always been present in the Final Four; the challenge with Trento has become a classic in the international field: total matches played between the two teams are in fact five with the budget in favor of Trentino Volley 4-1. The first victory came in the Club World Cup 2009: on November 4th, 2009, in the first phase of the tournament, the formation of Stoytchev prevailed 3-2 at the end of a very spectacular and fun game despite the use of the "Golden Formula"; the second one took place in the final of the 2011 CEV Champions League played in Bolzano on March 27th, 2011 while the third one is still relevant in Doha on October 13th, 2011 just in the semifinals of the Club World Cup (3-1). The only Russian victory is the on March 17th, 2012 (semi-finals of the Champions League in Lodz), when the Alekno team prevailed 1-3. The latest match is instead that one of October 18th, 2012 always in Qatar (semi-final of the Club World Cup in 2012) with a 3-0 victory.  

 ASSECO RESOVIA (Poland)

 It is the Company that organizes the event (compared to Podpromie Rzeszow has however, preferred the giant Tauron Arena in Krakow as the site for issues related to course greater chance of receptivity) and who recently put an end to the national domain of Belchatow, the leader of the last decade before Resovia was able to break the hegemony and winning two league titles in three years. The seventh national title came last season by winning the final 3-1 in the series against the Anastasi Gdansk 3-0 in the series; in the league still in progress gained access to the final that will challenge the Kedzierzyn-Kozle. The latest positive years have restored honor to a Club that in the seventies, between 1971 and 1975, won four league titles, reached the finals of the European Cup (where was defeated by CSKA Moscow in 1973) and received the silver medal for the Club World Cup. On the wall can boast three cups of Poland, the last of which won in 1987, and a National Super Cup (2013). The one that will end this weekend will be the fourth consecutive participation in the CEV Champions League, an event in which the last edition came to the brink of final victory, stopped only at the last act losing 3-0 in the match that assigned the trophy to by Zenit Kazan in Berlin. In the 2010 edition was instead just Trentino Volley to stop in Playoffs 6; the Yellow-blues imposed themselves in PalaTrento on March 3rd, 2010 and then were able to repeat it again in Poland thanks to the 3-1 of March 3rd conquered at the Hala Podpromie.
The coach of the White-Red formation is Andrzej Kowal, who four years ago replaced Ljubomir Travica, bringing immediately success to the team; the white-red technic can count on a lot of experts players starting from the Belarusian hammer Akhrem (former Iraklis), to continue with the setter Czech Tichacek (who often alternates with the setter of the National team Drzyzga), with the libero Ignaczak, and spiker Penchev. The biggest name of the squad of Poles are in any case the former Lube Kurek, definitely turned this season into a pure opposite; with him the other international players are Americans Holmes (middle-blocker) and Jaeschke (spiker).

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