FIVB Men’s Volleyball World Championship:
Piazza warns Iran against complacency before Czechia clash
Iran head coach Roberto Piazza cautioned his players not to get carried away by their last-16 victory over Serbia, as they prepare to face Czechia in the FIVB Men’s World Championship quarterfinals in Pasay City, Philippines, today.
Fresh off an epic five-set win against the host in their do-or-die final group game, the Asian powerhouse again had to come from behind twice to edge out Serbia 3-2 (23-25, 25-19, 24-26, 25-22, 15-9) on Tuesday.
Serbia led by as many as five points at 19-14 in the first set before Iran fought back to deny two set points and reduce the deficit to one, but Serbian outside-hitter Pavle Peric capitalized on the third, finishing off with a high-flying pipe shot. The second set stayed close until Iran broke away at 17-17, winning by six to level the scoreline.
A rollercoaster third set saw the lead change hands several times before Aleksandar Stefanovic’s ace settled the scoreline. Iran again fought back to force the match into the decider. Iranians stormed to a 4-1 lead in the tiebreaker and never looked back to get the job done.
Serbian opposite Drazen Luburic topped the scoring chart with 27 points, while opposite Ali Hajipour and outside-hitter Morteza Sharifi contributed with 23 points apiece for Iran.
Iran’s outside-hitter Ali Haqparast and middle-blocker Mohammad Valizadeh also finished in double figures, chipping in 18 and 10 points, respectively.
Asked how pleased he was with Iran’s performance after the game, the Italian head coach said: “We could have played much better in the first set and the second one. One the third one, we were leading the set at the end [but ultimately lost.] This is the kind of experience that we need to live on the court.
“We have 11 new players [in the squad], who have not been able to understand my language in volleyball until now, and that’s why I’m a little bit disappointed for them. In the end, all the guys are really happy. I’m happy too. The players know exactly that today was the game, but the next one in two days will be another ‘the game’,” the Italian told VBTV.
When asked how long his players would celebrate before focusing on the next game, Piazza replied: “I’ve already stopped celebrating, and they need to quit immediately because the other team played at 15:30 today and the game was not so long as ours, so we will have less time to recover.”
Runner-up to Serbia in a tight Pool H table that featured three teams with six points – including Brazil – Czechia made quick work of Tunisa earlier on Tuesday, coming out victorious in straight sets (25-19, 25-18, 25-23).
“The next match will definitely be more difficult than this one,” Piazza said of the last-four test, adding: “They are playing an amazing volleyball. They have two really important opposites, and the whole team is very good in every aspect. The players are big and tall, so we need to be smart and help each other.”
In a meeting after returning to the hotel, Piazza told his players not to settle for what they have already achieved in the flagship international event.
“We haven’t accomplished anything yet, so celebrating today’s victory is enough. When I first met with [Iran Volleyball Federation president] Milad Taqavi, I promised him we would always be among the top eight teams in the world. But now, simply being in the quarterfinals is neither sufficient nor satisfying for me, and it shouldn’t be for you, either,” said the Italian.
Iran and Czechia last met in the Olympic qualification tournament in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in October 2023, with the European team coming out on top in four sets.