Czechia survive Sweden in the first EuroVolley thriller, straight sets win of Italy over Greece
7 min read
If you wish to publish an Italian translation of this article, any of our other articles, or ANY PART OF THEM, please cite the original source. PLAGIARISM IS ILLEGAL!
The first thriller of CEV Enel EuroVolley 2026 Men has arrived — and Sweden came remarkably close to turning their long-awaited return to the European stage into something unforgettable.
Playing their first EuroVolley tournament since 1993, Sweden pushed Czechia to the limit in Modena before Lukas Vašina and his teammates finally prevailed 3–2 (25:22, 25:23, 23:25, 17:25, 15:13) in a dramatic battle that lasted five sets.
For Czechia, it was their second victory of the tournament after beating Greece on Friday. For Sweden, it was another performance that showed just how much fight they have brought back to the continental stage after a 33-year absence.
The opening set immediately established the tone with Sweden which started aggressively, moving 3-1 ahead after a powerful ace from Hampus Ekstrand and a block from Patrik Johansson and Axel Enlund. Czechia responded through Vašina and Marek Sotola, levelling at 5-5 and turning the match into a point-for-point battle.
Vašina then began making his presence felt from the service line as Czechia moved 13-10 ahead, but Sweden fought back through their block and eventually turned the score around to lead 15-14. Jakob Ekman and Axel Enlund carried much of the Swedish attack, but Czechia regained control at 20-18 and closed the set through Sotola and Vašina, with the latter producing the decisive attack for 25-22.
There was little to separate the teams in the second set. Both sides maintained solid reception — 64% positive for Sweden and 62% for Czechia — and the scoreboard remained remarkably tight.
Vašina and Matouš Drahonovský kept Czechia moving forward, while Sweden repeatedly found answers through Jacob Link and Enlund.
Czechia finally created some breathing room late in the set, reaching 22-20, only for Sweden to level again at 22-22.
This time, however, Czechia did not allow the comeback to continue. Sotola restored the lead and Jakub Klajmon delivered the final point as Czechia edged the set 25-23 to move within one set of victory.
Sweden responded exactly as a team fighting to make its EuroVolley return count.
Johansson’s ace helped them race into a 10-5 lead in the third set, with Link and Enlund continuing to cause problems in attack. Czechia gradually fought their way back behind Sotola and Drahonovský, even moving ahead 16-14 after a series of Swedish errors.
However, the teams were level again at 17-17 before Czechia moved ahead 20-18. Sweden saved their best volleyball for the closing moments, with Link putting them 24-22 ahead and Ekman delivering the decisive kill to send the match into a fourth set.
And the momentum was now completely with Sweden.
They opened the fourth 7-4 ahead and quickly transformed their advantage into a commanding 14-7 lead. Enlund and Link continued to find the floor, while Ekstrand added five points in the set. Czechia’s attempts to change the flow through substitutions had little effect as Sweden maintained control and eventually closed the set 25-17.
From two sets down, Sweden had forced a deciding fifth.
The tie-break began with Czechia responding immediately.
Vašina and Indra powered their team to a 3-0 lead, prompting an early Swedish timeout. It worked: Sweden won the next two rallies and once again turned the set into a battle of nerves.
Czechia led 8-6 at the change of ends, but Sweden immediately erased the deficit. The Czech side nevertheless managed to restore a two-point advantage at 11-9, and this time they held on.
Drahonovský produced a crucial block to give Czechia match point before Indra finished the contest with another stuff block. After four sets of momentum swings and a spectacular Swedish comeback, the first EuroVolley tie-break of the tournament belonged to Czechia.
Vašina finished with 19 points, while Sotola and Kliemens added 14 each and Drahonovský contributed 13.
Enlund was the most prolific player for Sweden and the match’s top scorer with 23 points, including 20 kills and three blocks.
Yet the final score told only part of the story.
Sweden may have left Modena without their first EuroVolley victory since returning to the competition, but they leave with another performance capable of turning heads.
Czechia, meanwhile, remain unbeaten after two matches and have already shown that they can survive when an opponent refuses to stay down.
“It was a really difficult game. Just like yesterday, we played well in the first two sets, and then I don’t know what happened — our energy and our focus just disappeared. They started to play, and we made the situation much more difficult for ourselves. In the end, we were a little bit lucky and managed to win this game. I hope that in the next matches we will be much better,” said Czech Matouš Drahonovský after then game.
After winning their historic opening match in spectacular venue in Naples, hosts Italy moved to Modena to face Greece in front of a sold-out Palapanini.
Ferdinando De Giorgi’s made a perfect start, collecting an early 7-3 lead, but Greece quickly showed they would not give up easily, cutting the deficit to 7-6 and forcing the Italian head coach to call a time-out.
Alexandros Raptis, who scored five points in the set, and Theodoros Voulkidis, with four, helped Greece move 13-12 ahead. Italy, on the other hand, relied on Gianluca Galassi, Daniele Lavia and Yuri Romanò, who contributed five points each, but could not establish a significant advantage. Greece even moved 20-19 ahead after a spike from Raptis, but Italy kept their composure when it mattered most. Romanò delivered the decisive attack to seal a tightly contested opening set 25-23 for the hosts.
Greece were not surrendered, pushing Italy hard from the very beginning of the second set and refusing to let the hosts build any advantage.
The teams remained locked together at 15-15, with Italy led again by Daniele Lavia and Yuri Romanò, who contributed four and five points respectively. Despite Italy’s powerful attacks, Greece consistently responded with quality plays of their own, with Dimitrios Mouchlias scoring five points and Alexandros Raptis again adding three to keep their team firmly in the race at 21-21. Once again, however, Italy found another gear in the decisive moments. Luca Porro’s spike gave the hosts their first set points, before Giovanni Sanguinetti finished the job with an attack from the middle to seal the set 25-23.
The four set told a different story, with the hosts determined to raise their level in front of a packed Palapanini and, after an ace from Daniele Lavia, Italy took an early 7-4 lead. Powered by strong attacks, Italy kept Greece at a distance at 12-8 before extending their advantage to 17-10.
Lavia was unstoppable, scoring six points in the set, while Romanò added four as Italy continued to dominate. Greece collapsed, struggling to find an answer to the hosts’ play, with Italy extending the lead to 22-14. Romanò then delivered the final blow, sealing the set and Italy’s second straight-set victory.
Lavia topped the scorers’ chart with 15 points through 61% in attack and one ace, while Romanò added 14, all in attack, through 58%.
Greece were led by Raptis with 12 points.
“We knew Greece would be a difficult opponent. They pushed us hard and played very well in the first two sets. We saw their game against our young team at the Mediterranean Games, so we wanted a little bit of revenge. We were very good at keeping our focus and balance, and in those decisive moments we played our game at the net. Every time we play here, it’s amazing. We all play here during the SuperLega, so we know this gym very well, but playing here in the Italian jersey feels even better,” said Italy’s middle blocker Gianluca Galassi.
__________________
🏐| CEV Enel EuroVolley 2026 | Saturday, September 12, 2026
👉🏼POOL A📍PalaPanini Modena
• 16.00 (Local Time) | Sweden – Czech Republic 2–3 (22:25, 23:25, 25:23, 25:17, 13:15)
• 21.05 (Local Time) | Greece – Italy 0-3 (23:25, 23:25, 16:25)
🏐| POOL A STANDINGS (updated on this day)
1. Italy 6
2. Czech Republic 5
3. Slovenia 3
4. Sweden 1
5. Slovakia 0
6. Greece 0
POOL B📍Arena 8888 Sofia
• 16.00 (Local Time) | Poland – Israel 3-0 (25:16, 25:17, 25:18)
📸| PHOTOGALLERY OF THE MATCH
• 19.00 (Local Time) | Bulgaria – Ukraine 1-3 (23:25, 22:25, 25:21, 21:25)
📸| PHOTOGALLERY OF THE MATCH
🏐| POOL B STANDINGS (updated on this day)
1. Ukraine 9
2. Poland 6
3. Bulgaria 6
4. Israel 0
5. Portugal 0
6. North Macedonia 0
POOL C📍Nokia Arena Tampere
• 15.00 (Local Time) | Denmark – The Netherlands 3-0 (25:17, 25:20, 25:20)
• 18.00 (Local Time) | Belgium – Finland 2-3 (25:23, 20:25, 19:25, 25:23, 10:15)
🏐| POOL C STANDINGS (updated on this day)
1. Finland 5
2. Belgium 4
3. Serbia 3
4. Denmark 3
5. Estonia 0
6. Netherlands 0
POOL D📍 BT Arena Cluj Napoca
• 17.00 (Local Time) | France – Türkiye 3-0 (25:19, 25:20, 25:20)
• 20.00 (Local Time) | Romania – Germany 2-3 (22:25, 23:25, 25:22, 25:15, 13:15)
🏐| POOL D STANDINGS (updated on this day)
1. Germany 8
2. France 6
3. Romania 3
4. Latvia 3
5. Türkiye 0
6. Switzerland 0
__________________
NEXT GAMES: Sunday, September 13, 2026
POOL A📍PalaPanini Modena
16.00 (Local Time) | Slovenia – Sweden
21.05 (Local Time) | Italy – Slovakia
POOL B📍Arena 8888 Sofia
16.00 (Local Time) | Portugal – Israel
19.00 (Local Time) | North Macedonia – Poland
POOL C📍Nokia Arena Tampere
15.00 (Local Time) | Estonia – Denmark
18.00 (Local Time) | Finland – Serbia
POOL D📍 BT Arena Cluj Napoca
17.00 (Local Time) | Switzerland – Türkiye
20.00 (Local Time) | Latvia – France
__________________
👀|QUICK LINKS
• EuroVolley 2026 – Calendar
• EuroVolley 2026 – All News
• All International news 🗞️
• Multimedia
• Facebook
• Instagram
__________________
