Nikola Grbić faces a dilemma ahead of EuroVolley in Sofia: three or four middle blockers?

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One of the big favorites for EuroVolley 2026, Poland, could begin its campaign in Sofia with only three middle blockers, and head coach Nikola Grbić admitted as much in an interview during the team’s preparation camp in Zakopane.
The Serbian expert has not yet decided how he will allocate the final squad spots — whether he will opt for three middle blockers and five outside hitters, or take four players for each position.

“I still haven’t made a decision. It’s too early to choose. We need four middle blockers for daily training, so we will definitely have four until the end of the preparation. I hope everyone will be healthy and I won’t have to make a decision because of someone’s injury,” he told.

The four middle blockers in Poland’s extended squad for EuroVolley 2026 are Bartlomiej Lemanski, Jakub Majchrzak, Szymon Jakubiszak, and Mateusz Poreba. It is among these four that Grbić will have to decide whether to keep all of them for the tournament or use the extra spot for another outside hitter.
The coach’s dilemma comes against the backdrop of serious personnel problems for Poland in the position. At EuroVolley, he will be unable to count on three middle blockers who have been important members of the national team in recent years — Mateusz Bieniek, Norbert Huber, and Jakub Kochanowski.

And Kochanowski’s injury complicates the situation.
The Polish coaching staff had hoped he would be able to recover in time, which is why the middle blocker traveled with the team to the United States for the final tournament of the Nations League group stage. However, immediately upon arrival, it became clear that his recovery would not proceed as expected.

“When we arrived there, he tried to train. According to the program, he was supposed to start doing certain exercises, but he was unable. We immediately realized that the effect of the injection he had received earlier was not what we had hoped for. That’s why almost at the beginning of our stay in the USA, we decided that he would have to undergo surgery,” Grbić explained.

If someone had told Grbić before the start of the season that Poland would have to cope without Bieniek, Huber, and Kochanowski, the coach admits that such a scenario would have seemed almost unbelievable.

“That would have been a crazy idea. Of course, you always start with a specific plan, and then circumstances change it. But that’s exactly what I like about this team. Regardless of unforeseen situations, everyone does their best to play as well as possible and achieve the best possible result,” the Serbian expert stated.

Grbić also emphasized that one of Poland’s greatest advantages is its huge pool of quality players. The depth of the squad allows the national team to continue fighting for major honors even when it loses several key players every year.

“I am really happy with the way the guys behave and play. It’s not easy every year to give up at least three or four players due to injuries or other reasons. I think that’s the great thing about Poland — there are so many players available who want to play, and the quality doesn’t drop that much. Every year we are on the podium with different players — both new ones and those returning. For me, this is no longer something new,” he said.

According to him, the situation is significantly different from that of national teams where the absence of one or two key players can dramatically affect the team’s overall level.

“I’m not saying it’s easy in Poland, but it’s certainly easier because we have many players available and the vast majority of them really want to play for the national team. That’s a huge plus,” the coach added.

Grbić has not yet finalized the squad that Poland will take to EuroVolley 2026, already submitting its extended list of 24 players to CEV, which includes the four middle blockers:

• Aliaksei Nasevich
• Jakub Popiwczak
• Marcin Komenda
• Bartlomiej Lemanski — middle blocker
• Bartosz Fijałek
• Wilfredo Leon
• Aleksander Śliwka
• Artur Szalpuk
• Kamil Semeniuk
• Jakub Majchrzak — middle blocker
• Maksymilian Graniczny
• Bartosz Firszt
• Tomasz Fornal
• Michał Gierżot
• Bartłomiej Bolońdź
• Marcel Bakaj
• Szymon Jakubiszak — middle blocker
• Kevin Sasak
• Bartosz Gomułka
• Mateusz Poręba — middle blocker
• Jakub Nowak
• Jakub Przybyłkowicz
• Sergiusz Serafin
• Jan Firlej

“I am preparing 15 players. I don’t think this will significantly change the organization of my work,” Grbić commented.

At the end of the interview, the conversation also turned to Tomasz Fornal, who helped solve the problem during the training camp in Zakopane.

“I am very grateful to him. I don’t know how I would have survived without it in Zakopane,” Grbić joked.

However, the coach admitted that he had also spoken with Fornal about his behavior in public and on social media. According to Grbić, national team players should be careful about what they say and publish, as even a joke can be interpreted differently and lead to an unnecessary scandal.

“He must be aware of the public image that all of us have — not just him. Every athlete must be aware of what they should do and what to be careful about when giving interviews, doing live Instagram broadcasts, or anywhere else. Tomek is a smart boy. Sometimes he does things in an unconventional way, but at the same time, he is a positive person,” concluded Nikola Grbić.

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