The 2015 International Season has started!
This year, there will be a lot of men’s tourneys we will keep an eye on such as the World League, Continental Championships and the World Cup.
Check out our list of the 12 PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT FOR this year.
Ricardo Lucarelli
Outside Hitter – Brazil
Lucarelli is no doubt Murilo’s successor.
The 23 year old is currently Brazil’s best outside hitter since the new Olympic cycle (2013-2016) started. He has already 2 World League silver medals, silver medal from the 2014 World Championship & gold from the 2013 Grand Champions Cup. In 2015, his role remains the same but with more expectations from Brazilian fans as he continues to improve his game and to lead Brazil at the 2016 Olympics.
FIVB Image
Pavel Kruglov
Opposite Hitter – Russia
The MVP of the CEV Cup is on track to become the newest scoring machine for Russia. Kruglov will compete for the starting position against Pavlov and Mikhaylov. The 29 year old is in great shape and had a great season in the Russian League with club team Dinamo Moscow.
Mateusz Mika
Outside Hitter – Poland
Mika played a very important role last year at the 2014 World Championship and helped Poland to win the World Championship crown in front of their home fans. With Winiarski’s retirement and Kurek’s return, Coach Antiga will heavily rely on Mika’s consistent volleyball skills.
Ivan Zaytsev
Opposite Hitter- Italy
Italy’s best player and best scorer suffered an injury during the World Championship which was one of the factors why Italy failed to finish in the Top 4. The result was disappointing prompting Italian volleyball fans to call for a change. Fast forward to 2015, Ivan has now recovered but we have to wait and see if he still has the same explosive touch he is known for. Maybe a new hairstyle is the other thing Ivan will surprise us with.
Max Holt
Middle Blocker – USA
Holt aka Thunder Holt in Volleywood is no doubt one of the best middle blockers in the world right now. His presence together with 2008 Olympic Champion David Lee gives Team USA the edge to be among the top favorites to win the World League & World Cup. In case you didn’t know, Max won the CEV Cup with Zaytsev and Dinamo Moscow this season.
USA's Max Holt BLOCKS Brazilian Lucas With ONE HAND!
2014 FIVB World League gold medalist & USA middle blocker MAX HOLT aka THUNDERHOLT shuts down Lucas with ONE HAND.
Posted by VOLLEYWOOD on Tuesday, July 22, 2014
Facundo Conte
Outside Hitter – Argentina
With Coach Velasco reportedly switching Conte from outside hitter to being an opposite hitter is THE main reason why Conte is on the list. We wonder how he’d do as a right side attacker & how Coach Velasco will integrate Conte’s all around skills in his system for offense and defense.
Srecko Lisinac
Middle Blocker – Serbia
With Dragan Stankovic slowly out of the limelight as a starting middle blocker for Serbia, his successor Srecko Lisinac is filling in just in time Serbia needs a reliable and strong middle blocker. At 22, Lisinas already has won a bronze medal & Best Blocker award at the 2013 Euro Volley. His dominance at the net will help Serbia attain international success this year.
Saeid Marouf
Setter – Iran
The 2014 My Volleywood Idol made headlines this season when he played in the Russian League with Zenit Kazan. Marouf is the first Iranian player to ever win the Russian League, Russian Cup and the prestigious CEV Champions League. As for the upcoming season, Iran will depend on his experience and the setting skills he is known for.
Earvin Ngapeth
Outside Hitter – France
France’s best player at the 2014 World Championship is definitely the talk of the town with several videos of him entertaining fans with some out of this world volleyball moves. No doubt Ngapeth has matured as a player with his bad boy days behind him. In 2015, will he show the same dominance he has shown within the last year? We can only hope so.
Gavin Schmitt
Opposite Hitter – Canada
Canada’s scoring machine had a great club season in Turkey. He led his team Arkas to win the Turkish League and Gavin was named as the MVP, Best Spiker, Best Scorer and Best Server. Canada’s chances of qualifying for the 2015 World Cup will strongly depend on Gavin. Schmitt and company will face Team USA at the NORCECA Continental Champs with the winner advancing to the aforementioned tournament in Japan.
Sergio
Libero – Brazil
His return became a trending topic in Volleywood. The soon to be 40 year old is back on the National Team just in time Coach Rezende shapes up his team for the 2016 Olympics. Since Sergio’s retirement after the 2012 Olympics, Brazil’s has failed to find a libero as great and reliable as Sergio. With his return, it looks like Brazil is back on top to be among the favorites in every FIVB tourney this year.
Robert Horstink
Outside Hitter – The Netherlands
He’s back on the roster! The 33 year old is on the preliminary roster for the Dutch team after a long absence. We can’t even remember the last time he played for the National Team. We can only hope he remains healthy and get back in great shape for the 2015 season. NED needs a player like him who is known for his intensity and explosive attitude.
As of press time, Rob missed the first weekend of the 2015 World League.
28 Comments
Leave a Reply