Ryley-Barnes
ITALY
The Italian SuperLega powerhouse Cucine Lube Civitanova made another notable transfer move. They hired Canadian outside hitter Ryley Barnes on a one-year contract. The University of Alberta graduate has spent the last season in the Russian Superliga side Ural Ufa while he is currently engaged with his national team in the 2018 FIVB Volleyball Nations League. His professional volleyball debut was marked by winning the second-best European cup – the 2017 CEV Cup – with the French side Tours Volley-Ball. Lube also brought back a player that was a product of their volleyball school, winning the Junior League in 2013, Enrico Diamantini. After having a successful season with Bunge Ravenna in which his club won the 2018 CEV Challenge Cup, a 25-year-old Diamantini was summoned to wear the jersey of Italy national team in the 2018 Nations League.
Speaking of Ravenna, they brought an 18-year-old Daniele Lavia as a pledge for the future. The outside hitter has just won the Junior League in Italy with the U19 team of Materdominivolley.It Castellana Grotte. At the same time, he was playing for the senior squad.
Gi Group Monza returned their former player, an outside hitter Andrea Galliani, who spent three seasons in a row in the club before moving to play in Division 2 side Monini Spoleto in 2017/18. Monza extended the contract with their starting libero Marco Rizzo who was the club most present player on the court, along with Thomas Beretta, with 33 appearances (126 sets) last season.
Marco Izzo is a new player of Revivre Milano. With the arrival of the 23-year-old player from Tonno Callipo Calabria Vibo Valentia, Milano completed the setter’s department. Izzo will compete with Riccardo Sbertoli for a place in the lineup in 2017/18 which will be his fifth straight SuperLega season.
Jonah-Seif
The talented American setter Jonah Seif closed the deal with an Italian triple crown winners in 2017/18, Sir Safety Conad Perugia. A 23-year-old University of California Santa Barbara graduate is projected to be a substitute for the captain Luciano De Cecco for the time being. Seif is on the U.S. national team list for the 2018 Nations League, spending the last two seasons, which were his first two professional seasons, in Polish Plus Liga club MKS Będzin.
Slovenia national team player Tonček Štern became the reinforcement of Taiwan Excellence Latina. A 22-year-old opposite has just ended his two-year collaboration with Calzedonia Verona. Tonček Štern, whose sibling Žiga is also country’s national team player, has been on the national team since 2015 when Slovenia won a historic silver medal at the CEV European Championship in Sofia.
Tonček Štern’s former club Verona have engaged two newcomers in a couple of days – a 33-year-old libero Daniele De Pandis from Diatec Trentino and a 29-year-old middle blocker Aimone Alletti from Wixo LPR Piacenza.
POLAND
Zaksa Kędzierzyn-Koźle hired a 28-year-old player who spent the last season in Łuczniczka Bydgoszcz – Mateusz Sacharewicz. He will reinforce the middle blocker’s department in the roster of 2017/18 Polish Plus Liga runners-up, committing himself with Zaksa on a two-year contract.
For the second time in the last three seasons, Zaksa sent middle blocker Krzysztof Rejno on a loan. After being loaned to Będzin in 2016/17, a 25-year-old player will have to prove himself to Zaksa coaching staff once again, this time in Aluron Virtu Warta Zawiercie in 2018/19. A player that was Rejno’s teammate in Będzin two seasons ago and remained in the club next season as well, Marcin Waliński, strengthened Aluron Virtu for the 2018/19.
A 23-year-old outside hitter Jan Fornal joined Będzin to play his first season in Plus Liga, coming from Division 2 side AGH Kraków. Thus, he will join his sibling Tomasz (Cerrad Czarni Radom) in the Polish top flight. Interestingly, their father Marek was also a highly successful volleyball player. He won the national title twice (1988, 1989), wearing the jersey of Hutnik Kraków.
Igor-Grobelny
After one year, Igor Grobelny returned to Cuprum Lubin. A 26-year-old Belgium national team player came to Lubin after having a very successful season in Hypo Tirol AlpenVolleys Haching with whom he won the bronze medal in the German Bundesliga. Grobelny, the sibling of Belgium women’s NT player Kaja Grobelna, won 8 gold MVP awards in Bundesliga last season, which gave him the second place in the MVP ranking. In addition to Grobelny, Lubin signed middle blocker Mariusz Marcyniak (Aluron Virtu) and outside hitter Jakub Wachnik (Dafi Społem Kielce).
RUSSIA
The current Russian Superliga runners-up Zenit Sankt-Peterburg signed Nova Novokuybyishevsk outside hitter Dmitriy Makarenko.
The setter Valentin Strilchuk, who recently parted ways with Superliga bronze medalists Dinamo Moscow, has found himself a new club. Coming with a reputation of the 2004 CEV Junior European Championship winner with Russia, Strilchuk signed for Enisey Krasnoyarsk.
See our sections – Transfers – Done Deals and Transfers – Rumors.
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