Good atmosphere
Stoytchev, who is now 44, has a very long experience in this competition: he has participated in the CEV Volleyball Champions League already seven times, bringing home three titles and will be now chasing a fourth one hoping to steer the hosts of Halkbank ANKARA to what would be a historic feat.
“I know the ambiance and the atmosphere of a Final Four from my previous experiences,” he reckons, “we always approached it knowing that we can do it better than anyone else,” adds the Bulgarian mentor. “Every time I get to feel the same emotions but I think this is quite normal. It is important that on Saturday, by the time we play JASTRZEBSKI Wegiel in the semis, we display our full potential.”
The home fans will also play a very important role as Halkbank attempts to turn into Turkey’s first club to win the men’s competition. “When you play at home, you get to feel more pressure on your shoulders than you would do if you were playing away,” he acknowledges. “Still, if we can cope with this situation, I think that the supporters can and will help us win our match.”
Apart from the physical preparation, Stoytchev also draws the attention of his group to the importance of a winning attitude. “Before the start of the match the players will be quite nervous and this is normal. However, it is imperative that they calm down as soon as the actions get started. We did not play that many strong teams lately and this could be a disadvantage for the semi-final with JASTRZEBSKI. However, this shall not turn into an excuse. We have to reset our minds, forget all the matches we have played so far this season and focus only and exclusively on the two matches we will get to play this weekend.”
Stoytchev analyses the other teams participating in this year’s Final Four tournament: “Their strengths may be their speed, serves, or attacks. On the other hand, it is quite difficult to spot our strengths because our team is quite new, so I can’t really identify the strong and the weak points on our side. Anyway, right from the start of the season, I have been trying to improve on the individual and collective skills, and I think that so far I have achieved 70-75% of the targets I had set.” Will this be enough to beat JASTRZEBSKI and then also the winner of the Russian derby starring Belogorie BELGOROD and Zenit KAZAN in the eventual final match?
The Bulgarian-born mentor also recounts a bit of his life in Turkey’s capital city: “I feel good here but have to admit that I do not know this city very well. Will I stay for another year? It is still too early to start with such speculations. Right now I just would like to have as many people as possible cheering on us this Saturday and Sunday so that we can achieve a historic result for Halkbank and Turkish Volleyball as well. Our players will need this support and I will be very happy if our fans will flock to the hall and help us fulfill our dream of home glory.”
For more similar articles click on CEV Champions League 2013/2014 M.
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