GUILTY OR NOT?
A lot of volleyball fans believe that Germany purposely to lost to Bulgaria and The Netherlands during the preliminary round of the ongoing European Championship to finish 3rd in their pool and face easier opponents in the second round believing that they will beat the Czech Republic.
The Results:
Germany 0-3 Bulgaria
Germany 2-3 The Netherlands (Take note: Germany’s Gyorgy Grozer did NOT play)
Germany 3-0 Czech Republic
With this record, Germany advances to the next round and will play against Belgium. If Germany wins, they will play Bulgaria in the Quarterfinal Round.
Holland goes to the next round as well and will play Slovenia. A Dutch victory takes them to the Quarterfinal round versus Poland.
Bulgaria is in the Quarterfinal Round and gets 2 days off. The host will then play Germany or Belgium as previously stated.
The Dutch Accusations
The Netherlands has publicly stated their disappointment on Germany’s dirty tactics.
“I think that the German coach played to lose. It is not good sportsmanship, this is not fair play. The Netherlands would never do this. If I am the coach, I will never go to lose any game.” -Coach Gido Vermeulen.
“I never made the calculations before the game. That is why I do not know if the Germans wanted to lose or not.” -Middle blocker Rob Bontje
Germany Answers Back!
“This match was crucial for us and the result shows that we must have played an excellent game. I was criticized for my choice of players against The Netherlands yesterday, but people do not realize that it is hard to play on top level for three days in a row. It is not enough to be strong, but you need to be smart as well. It is important to play well at the end of the tournament, not so much at the beginning.” -Coach Vital Heynen.
“This was not a tactical decision. We talked with the coach before and he told us that it was not important to lose or to win today, because the important game is against the Czech Republic. He gave me a free day to rest. He also gave some rest to Jochen Schöps.” -Gyorgy Grozer on why he DID NOT play vs The Netherlands.
THOUGHTS?
(images: cev.lu)