The four coaches and the FIVB Supervisor met with the media before the start of the Group 2 Finals in the beautiful setting of the Palace of Culture and Sports in Varna
Varna, Bulgaria, July 9, 2015 – The FIVB Volleyball World League Group 2 Finals event in Varna was kicked off on Thursday afternoon with a coaches’ press conference. The participants shared their thoughts ahead of Friday’s semifinals between Bulgaria and Belgium and between France and Argentina.
Dominique Baeyens, head coach of Belgium: "The games against the hosts are always more difficult, but my team is in great condition. Unfortunately, last weekend we lost our first setter and now we have to adjust to the new one, but this could also be an advantage, because our opponents do not know him. I can say that Bulgaria, France and Argentina are all favourites to win this tournament, while Belgium is the underdog."
Plamen Konstantinov, head coach of Bulgaria: "The upcoming matches will be very interesting due to the fact that all teams are similar in strength and in results. So everything is possible in the semifinals and the finals. I thank the audience in advance for the great support, which may be crucial to our victory."
Julio Velasco, head coach of Argentina: "I am pleased with the team’s condition. We have been in Bulgaria for a week now and have started to feel comfortable here, in Varna. We have adjusted well from winter to summer weather and to the time difference to avoid the disadvantage we would have otherwise been at compared to the European teams. Our semifinal match with France will be tough."
Laurent Tillie, head coach of France: "I am very happy France made it to the Final Four here. We are facing a tough task. We need to survive one match and then one more. We know Argentina very well. We have a lot of respect for this team and we know it is not going to be easy against them."
Slobodan Milosevic (SRB), FIVB Supervisor: "Group 2 is just a name, because all the teams participating here are top-level teams and their coaches understand that very well. I am pretty sure we are going to have some excellent matches. We already have a winner... the winner is volleyball."