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Portugal finished their CEV Enel EuroVolley Men 2026 Pool B campaign in convincing fashion, producing one of their most complete performances of the tournament to sweep North Macedonia 3–0 (25:13, 25:20, 25:20).
There was little doubt about the better team on the court: Portugal controlled the match from the opening exchanges, combining an efficient attacking game with a strong service and blocking performance while North Macedonia struggled to find consistency in reception and paid the price for too many errors.
The first set was effectively decided early. Portugal moved ahead 6–3 and gradually stretched their advantage, reaching 17–10 and then 18–11 as Bruno Dias distributed the attack with confidence. Portugal’s 75% positive reception provided the perfect platform, allowing them to attack at 52%, more than double North Macedonia’s 25%.
The difference was just as clear at the net. Portugal collected seven kill blocks to North Macedonia’s one and added two aces without conceding one, turning their superiority in the fundamental elements into a comfortable 25–13 finish.
North Macedonia responded with more resistance in the second set.
They took the initiative early and, after Portugal levelled at 5–5, the two teams remained locked in a much tighter battle. North Macedonia moved ahead 18–17 before Portugal regained control at the most important moment. Two consecutive attacks from Lourenço Martins helped swing the momentum, and Portugal eventually closed the set 25–20.
The third set followed a similar pattern. North Macedonia started brightly, leading 2–0 and 4–1, but Portugal remained patient and gradually turned the momentum around. Their ability to win the longer rallies and execute the decisive points allowed them to pull away late and complete the straight-sets victory.
The final statistics underline just how comprehensive Portugal’s performance was. They finished with a 51% attacking efficiency against 32% for North Macedonia and dominated positive reception 66% to 44%. Portugal also held the edge in blocking, 11–7, and aces, 3–0.
Alexandre Ferreira led the way for Portugal with 17 points to his name including an ace and 57% in attack, while for North Macedonia, Stojan Iliev and Aleksandar Ljaftov left the court with eight points each.
For Portugal, however, the victory does not immediately bring an answer to the most important question: their EuroVolley campaign is now over, but qualification for the knockout stage remains out of their hands, as their fate depends on the final Pool B encounter between North Macedonia and Israel. A North Macedonian victory would keep Portugal’s hopes alive, leaving the Portuguese players to watch the decisive match from the sidelines.
For Manuel Figueiredo, it has already been a memorable first senior EuroVolley: “It was my first EuroVolley as a senior, and I appreciated our performance. I wished we had won against Israel. Now, we need to wait for North Macedonia to beat Israel. So we are waiting for that game to see if we can go through.”
North Macedonia, meanwhile, leave the court knowing exactly what went wrong. Their reception difficulties once again proved costly against a Portugal side that was able to exploit every weakness: “Portugal played smarter than us. They didn’t make as many mistakes. We were struggling throughout the whole tournament with our reception. And they also found this weak spot,” said Gjorgi Gjorgiev.
Portugal have done their part. They finished their campaign with a performance that leaves no doubt about their quality.
Now comes the hardest part: waiting.
Poland continued their perfect run in Pool B with another straight-sets victory, overcoming Ukraine 3–0 (25:20, 25:13, 25:22) and maintaining their place among the leading contenders in Sofia.
The reigning champions needed very little time to take control, storming to an 8–1 lead in the opening set, putting Ukraine under constant pressure from the service line and forcing them into uncomfortable situations in reception. Oleh Plotnytskyi and his teammates gradually settled into the match and reduced the deficit to 10–6, but every Ukrainian attempt to close the gap was answered by Poland.
The numbers behind the first set told the story. Poland attacked at an impressive 65%, compared with just 33% for Ukraine. Poland’s three aces also helped the champions maintain control and eventually close the set 25–20.
The second set was even more one-sided: Poland immediately moved away, building a 10–5 advantage before turning the pressure into an 18–10 and then 20–10 lead. Their attack became almost impossible to contain, producing an extraordinary 89% efficiency in the set against Ukraine’s 50%!
But the dominance extended beyond the attack, as their positive reception reached 45%, compared with 28% for Ukraine. The result was a commanding 25–13 finish and a two-set lead.
Ukraine finally managed to match Poland for long stretches in the third.
The teams were level at 6–6, 9–9, 13–13 and 15–15, turning the set into the kind of battle the opening two frames had failed to provide.
Plotnytskyi again tried to change the match with his powerful service runs, but Poland repeatedly managed to absorb the pressure. Wilfredo León then stepped forward in transition, delivering several important attacks as Poland gradually created separation after the 20-point mark.
Ukraine could not produce another comeback, and Poland closed the set 25–22 to complete another clean sweep.
The overall statistics highlighted just how effective the Polish offence had been. Poland attacked at 68% across the match, compared with 39% for Ukraine, while their service game produced eight aces to two.
Bartłomiej Bołądź led all scorers with 20 points to his name, providing Poland with a constant attacking threat from the opposite position.
“We played at a really high level today. Both teams fought hard, but our serving was strong and our spiking was right on point. We tried to contain their serve as much as possible. In the first set, we built a seven-point lead; we let it slip for a moment, but managed to regroup and pull ahead by two or three points to close it out. It ended 3–0, but it definitely wasn’t easy,” said Wilfredo León.
Another three-set victory keeps Poland’s campaign firmly on track — but the third set also showed that Ukraine still have the weapons to make the leading teams work for every point.
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🏐| CEV Enel EuroVolley 2026 | Tuesday, September 15, 2026
POOL A📍PalaPanini Modena
• 16.00 (Local Time) | Greece – Sweden 3-1 (25:23, 25:21, 17:25, 25:20)
• 21.05 (Local Time) | Czech Republic – Italy 1-3 (25:23, 16:25, 20:25, 20:25)
🏐| POOL A STANDINGS (updated on this day)
1. Italy 12
2. Czech Republic 8
3. Slovenia 6
4. Greece 6
5. Sweden 1
6. Slovakia 0
👉🏼POOL B📍Arena 8888 Sofia
• 16.00 (Local Time) | North Macedonia – Portugal 0-3 (13:25, 20:25, 20:25)
📸| PHOTOGALLERY OF THE MATCH
• 19.00 (Local Time) | Poland – Ukraine 3-0 (25:20, 25:13, 25:22)
📸| PHOTOGALLERY OF THE MATCH
🏐| POOL B STANDINGS (updated on this day)
1. Poland 12
2. Ukraine 12
3. Bulgaria 9
4. Portugal 4
5. Israel 2
6. North Macedonia 0
POOL C📍Nokia Arena Tampere
• 17.00 (Local Time) | Belgium – Denmark 3-1 (19:25, 25:20, 25:19, 25:23)
• 20.00 (Local Time) | The Netherlands – Finland 2–3 (25:18, 21:25, 26:24, 20:25, 11:15)
🏐| POOL C STANDINGS (updated on this day)
1. Finland 10
2. Belgium 10
3. Denmark 6
4. Serbia 5
5. Netherlands 2
6. Estonia 0
POOL D📍 BT Arena Cluj Napoca
• 17.00 (Local Time) | Latvia – Switzerland 1-3 (22:25, 19:25, 25:16, 22:25)
• 20.00 (Local Time) | France – Germany 3-0 (25:21, 25:17, 25:19)
🏐| POOL D STANDINGS (updated on this day)
1. France 12
2. Germany 11
3. Romania 7
4. Türkiye 3
5. Latvia 3
6. Switzerland 3
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NEXT GAMES: Wednesday, September 16, 2026
POOL A📍PalaPanini Modena
• 16.00 (Local Time) | Sweden – Slovakia
• 21.00 (Local Time) | Czech Republic – Slovenia
POOL B📍Arena 8888 Sofia
• 16.00 (Local Time) | Israel – North Macedonia
• 19.00 (Local Time) | Poland – Bulgaria
POOL C📍Nokia Arena Tampere
• 17.00 (Local Time) | Denmark – Serbia
• 20.00 (Local Time) | The Netherlands – Estonia
POOL D📍 BT Arena Cluj Napoca
• 17.00 (Local Time) | Türkiye – Latvia
• 20.00 (Local Time) | France – Romania
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👀|QUICK LINKS
• EuroVolley 2026 – Calendar
• EuroVolley 2026 – All News
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