2021-22 Matchday Program Vol.9 | OSAKA BLUTEON | Panasonic Sports

Must-see! Highlights of this match

Suntory Sunbirds Predicted Starting Lineup: #13 Dmitriy Muserskiy, #3 Haruki Ono, #11 Kosuke Hata,
#8 Masahiro Yanagida, #6 Peng Shikun, #9 Masaki Oya, (Libero: #1 Taiki Tsuruda)

Hello everyone. I am analyst Kyogo Iwasawa. This week, we are playing against last season's champions, the Suntory Sunbirds.

The Suntory Sunbirds are characterized first by their deep roster, featuring excellent players such as #11 Hata and #7 Alain (both outside hitters) who play in place of #10 Fujinaka, and #12 Sato (middle blocker). Furthermore, they have very high blocking ability centered around large players over 210cm tall like #13 Muserskiy (opposite) and #6 Peng (middle blocker), as well as the agile #3 Ono (middle blocker). Including setter #9 Oya, many of their players hit jump serves, giving them strong break-scoring ability with their serves.

Among them, the Sunbirds' players to watch are #6 Peng, #8 Yanagida (outside hitter), and #9 Oya.

In addition to his blocking ability of 0.62 blocks per set, Peng's combination with Oya has improved with every match, and he is increasing his presence on the offensive end by utilizing his naturally high hitting point to spike over blockers and score.

Yanagida has the mental toughness to break through when the team is at a disadvantage and needs a point with his powerful serve, and he racks up points in spikes by reading the block to choose his hitting lanes and mixing hard and soft shots. He has recorded a serve efficiency of 14.7% (2nd in the league) and a spike success rate of 53.2% (3rd in the league), giving him top-tier offensive power in the country.

Oya used to have a tendency to set the ball to Muserskiy in crucial situations, but he now makes bold setting decisions even in high-pressure moments, and is characterized by his active use of quick attacks even when the pass is disrupted or late in the set.

Following last week's match against Toray, the Panthers will aim for victory by ensuring they don't give up service points even when the pass is disrupted, avoiding being shut down by the opponent's block by aiming for rebounds or block touches on spikes, and creating situations where it is difficult for the opponent's spikers to attack by serving aggressively at their outside hitters to reduce their offensive options, thereby connecting defense to offense.

Please continue to give your passionate support to the Panthers this week so that we can finish the final home game of the season with a victory.

Laurent Tillie Head Coach Interview

Last week, we went 1-1 against the Toray Arrows. We lost the first match, but in the second, our serves and blocks functioned well, and we won by playing the game in our signature Panthers style.: I feel that we were good in terms of blocking throughout the two matches. On Saturday, I think we couldn't play our game, perhaps because we felt nervous and pressured. We made mistakes on Saturday that we don't usually make. I think the reason for that was the pressure. In Sunday's match, we played our best game of the season. Throughout the match, our serves, blocks, and passes were good, and overall we had a good game.
In Sunday's match, Evadendan, who made his first start, and veteran Shimizu performed well. Won't the fact that both players were active and we won give the team a good rhythm?: Evade-Dan proved in this match that he can perform well from the start. Good players can perform well whether they start or come off the bench, but there are matches where it is important to be able to perform well as a substitute. Evade-Dan is a talented player. I think there is a possibility of using him in various situations. Shimizu has been affected by injuries this season, so I think his condition changes depending on how he feels that day, but he is working hard in practice, and I think he has been playing well enough to be a starter recently.
Please tell us your enthusiasm for the match against last year's champion team, Suntory.: We played two wonderful matches against Suntory last time. Since Muserskiy, who was absent previously, is back, I consider this a new team. Muserskiy is one of the world's best players, but outside hitters Alain and Hata are also performing well. I believe Suntory's strengths are their serve, block, and attack. Suntory has many players who serve well, and their blocking technique is clean, which puts pressure on the opposing team. They have only lost one match since Muserskiy joined the team, but this weekend's matches will be a chance for us to test what we can do, and I think it will be an interesting game. As the Panthers, we want to maintain ball possession as much as possible, stay patient, and improve our serving and attacking. It will be a match where both teams bring out their weapons. It should be a truly exciting game, and I am looking forward to it.

#1 Kunihiro Shimizu Interview

In the second match against Toray last week, you were in the starting lineup for the first time since the VC Nagano match on January 29th. With your sharp serves and high conversion rate on the tosses entrusted to you in difficult situations, wouldn't you say you are approaching top form as the league nears its end?: My condition is steadily improving. I injured my abdominal muscle during the match against VC Nagano and was away from the court for four weeks. I want to be careful because the risk of sudden injury is higher when you feel like your body is in good shape. As you get older and have longer periods of inactivity, it becomes harder to reach top performance. Young players can jump at full capacity as soon as they enter the game, and there is no discrepancy in their physical sharpness. At my age, if my body cools down after warming up, it is difficult to get back into top form. This is my challenge for this season, but I want to strive for results even when I come off the bench. I think the reason the second match yielded better results than the first was that I set the ball higher and focused on speed and power in my serves.
This is the final home game, welcoming Suntory. Please tell us your enthusiasm.: Suntory, who we play this week, and Toray, who we played last week, are similar teams; their tall opposites can score even in difficult situations. Furthermore, their attacks from both sides are even more aggressive. It is important for the Panthers that our serves function as intended. If we can disrupt the opponent with our serves and connect that to break opportunities, I believe we can manage the game like we did last Sunday. We suffered bitter defeats against Suntory last year. Winning against a strong team at the top of the standings will give us confidence and momentum. I think the difference of one or two points will be crucial. I want to snatch those points that don't show up in the statistics.

#1 Kunihiro Shimizu Player Profile

#13 Interview with Michal Jaroslaw Kubiak

The league season has gone by quickly, with 28 matches already played. It is a more chaotic league season than in previous years. Matches with pressure continue as you aim to advance to the finals.: It is difficult to reach the top spot, but I think there is still a chance to advance to the Final 3. Many teams are unable to complete their matches due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so we don't know what will happen in the future. We must do our best and wait to see what happens.
This season took place after the Tokyo Olympics. Must it have been a difficult season for conditioning as well?: For 11 years, I have spent seasons joining my club team after being with the national team, so I am used to it. The Polish national team finished 5th at the Tokyo Olympics. It was very disappointing because we were aiming for a better result, but I am very happy and think it is wonderful that the French national team, coached by Coach Tillie, won the gold medal and brought it back to the Panthers. Every time I return to the club team from the national team, it is a challenge, but I try to be in the best physical shape possible. I think my condition is good.
How do you feel about the current situation where active university students, Otsuka and Evade-Dan, have joined the Panthers and are becoming indispensable to the team?: It is very good for young players to be able to play at the top level in Japan. This is because the growth of young players leads to the growth of Japanese volleyball. In Europe, 23 or 24-year-old players are not considered young, and there are players who play professionally at 18. Otsuka and Evade-Dan are helping the Panthers with their good play, and there are other young, talented players active on other V.League teams as well. I think it is wonderful to be able to provide a place for young players to excel.
Please tell us your enthusiasm for the match against last year's champion team, Suntory.: It doesn't matter who the opponent is; we just need to play our own game. If we do our best, we should be able to beat them. It won't be easy, but we have a chance to win. It is important to believe in our own strength. The league is in its final stages. I want to enjoy playing the remaining matches.

#13 Michal Jaroslaw Kubiak Player Profile

Past Match Results (Regular Round Only)

away game	January 31, 2021	3 - 2	Match Result Details
away game	November 27, 2021	0 - 3	Match Result Details
away game	November 28, 2021	2 - 3	Match Result Details

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