Atlas Arena in Lodz will feature two matches of two contenders for the three remaining spots in the top six of the FIVB Volleyball Men's World Championship
Lausanne, Switzerland, September 14, 2014 – Five teams are vying for the three remaining spots in the top six, who will move to the third round of the FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship.
Brazil, Russia and France, who all won impressively against their opponents on Saturday, already took the first three spots. Iran, USA, Germany, Canada and hosts Poland still have one match to decide their fates in the tournament.
In Pool E, Iran will face Serbia, while hosts Poland will play top six qualified team France in Lodz. USA will take on Argentina in Bydgoszcz.
In Pool F, Canada and Germany will play each other in Wroclaw.
Serbia and Iran take latest two meetings in mind – Serbia and Iran recently had two encounters in the 2013 World League, when each team beat the other once in five-sets. The last time these two teams have met was once at the World Championship in 1970, when Serbia was then Yugoslavia and defeated Iran in another a five-setter. Serbia have an advantage over Asian sides, winning all of their last 10 matches. Iran coach Slobodan Kovac was a former player of Yugoslavia and have won bronze and gold medals at the Atlanta Olympic and Sydney 2000 Olympic Games, respectively.
USA search for second title – USA are in search of their second World Championship title; they won it in 1986. To stay on track, USA need to have a victory of 3-0 or 3-1 to earn a third round berth. USA have take into account that they have won 14 of their 17 encounters with their last second round match rivals Argentina in major competitions. In the World Championship, USA have won five of the previous six, including their most recent meeting in the competition in 2010 when they won 3-1 over the South Americans.
Poland count on advantage over France in past World Championships – Poland have defeated France in each of their previous three meetings at the World Championship. Poland won all of those three matches in straight sets that took place between 1949 and 1960. Though in their three recent meetings, France have won two matches in the World League and one at the European Championship in 2013.
Australia seek first win against Italy – Australia and Italy have met once before at the World Championship and favoured the latter with a lopsided straight sets victory in 1982. Italy have won all of their nine encounters with Australia in major competitions and on seven occasions, Australia suffered straight-set defeats.
Clash to keep undefeated record – After the second round, only one team will finish with an undefeated record as Brazil and Russia face each other to settle this dispute. Both teams have already earned berths in the top six for the third round. They have met on nine previous occasions at the World Championship, with Brazil winning the last two after the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
Bulgarian advantage over Finland – Bulgaria won both previous World Championship matches against Finland that took place in 1952 and 1966. In more recent meetings in major competitions, Bulgaria have won nine of twelve of these encounters. Even at the continental level, Bulgaria have won in straight sets in their last European Championship encounter.
Germany and Canada to aim for a 3-0 or 3-1 win – Both teams are up for qualification in the third round but must be able to gain the maximum three points to advance. Canada must win 3-0 or 3-1 to get the top six qualification ticket but Germany will also be having the same mission.
Back on winning track but not for long – After winning their respective matches on Saturday, Cuba and China will have their first ever encounter to knock each other out of the winning path. Cuba finished with a silver medal at the World Championship in 2010. China on the other hand will improve their 2010 finish regardless since they finished 19th in the last edition.