Zenit – team
In its debut in the Champions League, Zenit KAZAN defeated Unicaja and then scored four wins in a row to qualify for the playoffs.
In the first round of the playoffs 12 Zenit defeated Yastshembski, in the next round it was better than Cannes and reached the Final Four.
Despite the powerful team, KAZAN was not considered a favorite in the “Final Four“. Italian teams “TREVISO” and “PIACENZA” played in the semifinals, and Zenit met “Skra“. Zenit managed to win against Skra in five sets and enter the final game.
Zenit played a tough game against PIACENZA which was led by late Vigor Bovolenta in the final. They were a set down two times in the match 0:1 and 1:2 but eventually won in the tie break and made an unique achievment of winning the most prestigious trophy in Europe on their first attempt.
Here are the players that were the part of the winning team:
Ball Lloy – 36 year-old was the oldest player of the “Final Four” in Lodz. On the fourth attempt the American won the Champions League final!
Pavel Zaytsev – Even before the start of the season it was clear that Zaytsev will be a replacement for Ball. Pavek has played only one full game with “Unicaja”.
Alexander Kosarev – Just before the decisive match of the Champions League Alexander had a serious back injury. But in the group stage Kosarev was very stable.
Alexander Bogomolov – Tallest player of the final round (208 cm) made five blocks in the semifinals and the same number in the final! It would be very unfair if the he wasn’t awared the best blocker of the tournament.
Maxim Shpilev – During the entire tournament he took part in only six games because of the tough competition.
Alexey Bovduy – Alexey played equally well the matches he started in the starting line-up and those from the bench.
Sergey Tetyukhin – As it befits a captain, he led his teammates in the difficult moments. In Lodz Tetyukhin carried a very heavy load.
Artem Ermakov – At the beginning of the season Artem was a starter, but he mostly watched the decisive matches from the bench.
Nikolay Apalikov – Injury prevented Apalikov to fully play in the “Final Four”, he only appeared in one semifinal game. But in the group stage Nikolay played great.
Clayton Stanley – If the match with the Polish, Stanley was just warming up, with the Italians he literally flew over the net hitting the balls into the opponent’s court.
Andrey Egorchev – He played safe, surprisingly rarely making mistakes on the pitch and picking up points in the most important episodes.
Alexander Gerasimov – Experienced player, had the ability to enter the game at any time and do not spoil it.
Vladislav Babichev – Vladislav was the only player in KAZAN’s starting lineup, who was under thirty.
Viktor Sidelnikov – Victory in Lodz was the pinnacle this coach’s career. He took command in Kazan in 2001, back when it was in the Premier League “B”. Then there was the rapid rise, first medals in the championship, a sensational victory in the Cup of Russia in 2004, and its fantastic breakthrough in Europe.
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