The Argentine volleyball teamthat already qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics, had a great performance this Friday but lost 3-2 to Slovenia, after having a ball to win the match, in the quarterfinals of the Volleyball Nations League (VNL).
In Lodz, Poland, The Argentine men’s team, led by Marcelo Méndez, was close to making history, but was very close to falling 3-2 with partial scores of 19-25, 25-17, 17-25, 29-27 and 15-7.
Argentina had a 2-1 lead in sets, but missed the final shot in the fourth. In the tiebreak, they felt the blow of having been just one step away from the semi-finals and the team dropped its level to be overtaken by Slovenia, the best of the qualifying round.
With 26 points, Bruno Lima was the best player for the Argentine team, which will now rest for a few days and will then focus on the main objective of the year, which is the major Olympic event in France.
Two days before, Argentina met his rivals at the Olympic Games. They will be part of Group C along with Japan, Germany and the United States. Méndez’s team achieved their qualification in the last VNL Week played in Slovenia.
The 12 countries that will be in Paris 2024 are Slovenia, France, Italy, the United States, Brazil, Japan, Serbia, Poland, Egypt, Canada, Germany and Argentina.
In the VNL, Argentina was unable to make its way to the semi-finals for the first time. In that round, Slovenia, its executioner, will face Japan, who beat Canada 3-0. In the other round, Poland, who beat Brazil 3-1, will face France, who defeated Italy 3-2.
