Five-set elimination in Turin

Finland defeated co-hosts Italy 3:2 on Wednesday evening at Palavela Arena in Turin, securing a place in the European Volleyball Championship semi-finals. An estimated 8,000 spectators attended the quarterfinal, which concluded when Italian opposite Yuri Romano hit an attack out of bounds in the tie-break. Italy entered the tournament as the 2025 world champions. The victory marks Finland's first win against Italy in men's volleyball in 48 years, eliminating the hosts from medal contention before the final weekend in Milan.

Joonas Jokela28

Luka Marttila22

Joonas Jokela

28 points

Luka Marttila

22 points

Data from the article text

Tactical execution and individual scoring

Italy took the opening set before Finland responded by claiming the second 28:26 and dominating the third set 25:16. Italian setter Simone Giannelli delivered an ace in the fourth set to force a deciding fifth frame. Italy built leads of 9:6, 11:8, and 12:10 in the tie-break, but Finland recovered to reach match point first. Opposite Joonas Jokela led Finland with 28 points, while 23-year-old outside hitter Luka Marttila contributed 22 points. Setter Fedor Ivanov directed Finland's offence under head coach Olli Kunnari, while Polish coach Kamil Soloducha noted that tactical serving pushed Italy's reception three to four metres off the net.

Following the defeat, Italian head coach Ferdinando De Giorgi addressed his team's performance.

“We cannot look for any excuses. We failed at the most important moment.”

Italian captain Simone Giannelli also reflected on the quarterfinal result.

“We are really disappointed, considering how we played in the match and in training. That is how sport is: it is as beautiful as it is cruel. The opponents played really well.”

Semi-final lineup and schedule in Milan

The outcome guarantees Finland at least a fourth-place finish in the championship, matching their previous top result from Moscow in 2007. In the other quarterfinals, France defeated Romania 3:0 and Poland beat Germany 3:0 on Tuesday, while Slovenia eliminated Belgium 3:1 (25:22, 25:22, 20:25, 25:13) on Wednesday under coach Fabio Soli. Polish Volleyball Federation president Sebastian Swiderski, attending the CEV congress in Milan, evaluated Finland's development.

“The Finnish national team is an interesting, young team. You can see that training in this country has returned to the right track.”

Both semi-final fixtures take place on Friday, 25 September, in Milan. Poland faces Slovenia at 17:00, followed by Finland against France at 21:00.