Only two days left until the Del Monte® Coppa Italia Final Four, on 27 and 28 January at the Unipol Arena in Bologna. The four protagonists, Itas Trentino, Sir Susa Vim Perugia, Mint Vero Volley Monza and Allianz Milano also took to the field yesterday, Wednesday 24 January, in the 5th return day of SuperLega Credem Banca, which will end this evening with the RAI live broadcast between Pallavolo Padova and Valsa Group Modena. Here are the statements, two days before the event, from the coaches and captains of the four teams.
Fabio Soli (coach Itas Trentino): “It is an event that we care a lot about because it has always represented a weekend of very high level competitions. We get there with the awareness that we have done a lot to be among the four teams that will compete for the trophy and that it is absolutely not a given to participate. All the more reason we want to have our say as much as possible to continue the growth path implemented in recent months. In the Semifinal we will face an excellent Monza team who are demonstrating all their quality in the championship and who, to get to Bologna, eliminated a great team like Civitanova. An important aspect will be to immediately transform the great anticipation I sensed in the environment ahead of this race weekend into positive energy. We will need a concrete and attentive performance, made up of all those emotional and technical contents that have accompanied us on the positive path sustained up to now”.
Marko Podrascanin (captain Itas Trentino): “We arrive at this Final Four with a growing form, what we need to be able to have our say and to try to make a good journey. We are happy with what we have done so far in the Regular Season: it has been a good ride also thanks to the conviction that the Scudetto victory last May gave us. The team is mature, has been playing together for three years now and wants to make the most of this event. I think it will be a good and balanced Semi-final; Monza is, in my opinion, the biggest surprise of this championship, it plays in a precise manner, has a well-defined structure and has always achieved good results against the so-called big teams. The Italian Cup is always a highly anticipated and prestigious event, you just need to look at the roll of honor to understand: only large clubs have won it. Trentino Volley has been reaching the Final for two years and definitely wants to try to take the next step, but to do so we need to win Saturday’s Semifinal against Monza”.
Massimo Eccheli (coach Mint Vero Volley Monza): “We earned this participation in the Italian Cup on the pitch. Now we’re going to face Trento, a team that currently has a very high psychophysical level. This is a one-off match in which anything is possible and we will play until the last point.
Thomas Beretta (captain Mint Vero Volley Monza): “After the match against Verona, we can now focus on the Final Four. We prepare like any other match, having to face Trento, one of those very tough teams for us. However, in reality it is the Italian Cup, so great news not only for us but for Vero Volley.
Angelo Lorenzetti (coach Sir Susa Vim Perugia): “The exact value of the Italian Cup Final Four is given by the sporting struggle and the tension that exists in the Quarter Finals. It is a top event that everyone wants to go to because everyone knows that it is a very beautiful event beyond the result which is also very important. You play in arenas that are always packed and you live in an environment that is always very pleasant.
Wilfredo Leon (captain Sir Susa Vim Perugia): “We are preparing with great diligence, we will go to Bologna to give our best both in the Semi-final and in the eventual Final because our ambition is to bring the Italian Cup back to Perugia.
Roberto Piazza (Allianz Milano coach): “Our semi-final of the Del Monte® Coppa Italia will be a very complicated match. The Umbrian team will also want to make amends against us after the match last December 26th. It will be a complicated challenge first of all because it is an inside or outside match. We know well what it means to play this type of match. We also tried it recently in the CEV Cup, on our own skin. We will need great attention and great motivation on every ball. I know these may seem like clichés, but they absolutely aren’t. You need the will to go and get every single ball. Because in our sport every single ball is truly important.
Matteo Piano (Allianz Milano captain): “A Semi-final of the Del Monte® Coppa Italia is always a challenge of the highest level. Perugia is a tough team, which plays very well, great volleyball, but we are also capable of playing an excellent game. We are in Bologna, an important place for our sport, which has already seen other Final Fours and many big events. I am convinced that the Italian Cup will above all be a celebration of volleyball. Our Semifinal will be a good, hard-fought match. May the best man win.
Del Monte® Coppa Italia
7 vittorie: Daniele Bagnoli (2006/07, 2004/05, 2003/04, 1999/00, 1996/97, 1994/95, 1993/94)
5 vittorie: Ferdinando De Giorgi (2020/21, 2019/20, 2008/09, 2007/08, 2001/02);
4 vittorie: Silvano Prandi (2005/06, 2000/01, 1998/99, 1995/96)
3 vittorie: Gian Paolo Montali (1992/93, 1989/90, 1986/87); Julio Velasco (1988/89, 1987/88, 1985/86); Radostin Stoytchev (2012/13, 2011/12, 2009/10)
2 vittorie: Lorenzo Bernardi (2018/2019, 2017/18); Angelo Lorenzetti (2015/16, 2014/15); Gianpaolo Guidetti (1978/79, 1979/80); Claudio Piazza (1981/82, 1982/83)
1 vittoria: Gianlorenzo Blengini (2016/17); Francesco Dall’Olio (1997/98); Paulo Roberto De Freitas “Bebeto” (1991/92); Massimo Botti (2022/23); Alberto Giuliani (2010/11); Nikola Grbic (2021/22), Adriano Guidetti (1980/81); Roberto Masciarelli (2002/03); Luca Monti (2013/14); Andrea Nannini (1984/85); Daniele Ricci (1990/91); Nerio Zanetti (1983/84)
