AVC Men’s Volleyball Champions League:
Foolad Sirjan eying third continental crown
Foolad Sirjan will be looking to build on its dazzling year-long form when beginning its title defense at the AVC Men’s Volleyball Champions League – starting May 11 in the Japanese cities of Hirakata and Kyoto.
Fresh from a second successive crown at the Iranian Premier League, Foolad will fancy a comfortable run in Pool C – also featuring Chinese Taipei’s Taichung Bank and Nakhon Ratchasima QminC of Thailand.
Behrouz Ataei’s men will begin their bid for a third Asian title against the Thai champion on the opening day of the competition, before taking on Taichung Bank two days later.
A top two finish in the pool will send Foolad into the quarterfinals, where a much tougher test will await Ataei’s men, who will likely face home-favorite Osaka Bluteon or Chinese club Shanghai Bright for a last-four place.
Iranian opposite Ali Hajipour, who won the MVP prize in the Iranian league finals against Shahdab Yazd, as well as veteran middle-blocker Mohammad Mousavi and prolific outside-hitter Amirhossein Esfandiar will be the men to watch in the Foolad squad in the Asian event.
Ataei announced in an interview on Friday that French stars Earvin N’Gapeth and Trévor Clévenot are also set to join Foolad on short contracts ahead of the visit to Japan.
N’Gapeth and Clévenot played key parts in France’s Olympic gold-winning run on home soil last summer, as they were named the joint best outside-hitters of the dream team, with the former also picking up the Most Valuable Player award in Paris 2024.
Ataei, who stepped down from his role as Iran head coach midway through a dreadful Olympic qualification campaign in October 2023, has enjoyed a turn of fortune in his career since taking over the Foolad job, leading the club to double domestic league titles, plus the Asian success and the Iranian Volleyball Cup trophy over the past 12 months.
Foolad also made it to semifinals at the FIVB Club World Championship last December, before leaving Brazil with an impressive bronze medal.