Defeated by Korean Air in the men’s volleyball opening match
Hyundai Capital coach Choi Tae-woong, who waited for the start of the 2023-2024 season with confidence even before the game, entered the press conference with a deeply worried face after the game.
Coach Choi expressed regret, saying, “If the opponent made about one invisible mistake throughout the game, we made about two per set.”
Hyundai Capital lost with a set score of 0-3 in the opening match of the professional volleyball men’s division against Korean Air held at Gyeyang Gymnasium in Incheon on the 14th.
It was a close match with a 2-3 point margin in each set, but they could not get over the critical point and bowed to last season’s champion Korean Air.
Coach Choi expressed his disappointment with the physical condition of outside hitter Jeon Gwang-in, who was not in normal condition.
He pointed out, “The core of our team is Jeon Gwang-in. The problem is that Jeon Gwang-in is not in good condition. (He cannot attack from the outside hitter position), so the attack was concentrated on one side. It was a play I did not want.”
Hyundai Capital foreign player Ahmed Ikhbairi (registered name: Ahmed), who made his debut on this day, scored 30 points, the most for both teams.
However, with an attack share of 55.21%, he was responsible for more than half of the attacks, exposing attack paths to the opponent at each point of the game.
Heo Soo-bong, who was replaced by the signing of Apogee Spiker Ahmed, scored 10 points as a middle blocker.
Coach Choi said, “Actually, Heo Soo-bong’s reception was better than expected while training in the outside hitter position, but he was not able to attack. He still needs time to adapt to attacking in the opposite direction from his original position.” He added, “For the time being, 안전놀이터 he will be in the middle position.” “I will play as a blocker,” he predicted.
He added, “I need some more time to get my hands and feet together. I will be at full strength by the middle of the second round.”
Meanwhile, Korean Air coach Tommy Tilikainen, who won the opening game, said, “The players were on fire until the end. It was good to see them trying to win. The opponent also had a really good defense. Ahmed was especially good in attack. It was a fun and good match.” I commented.
He then ordered, “There are some areas that need improvement in terms of technology. There is also a game next week, so we need to grow and improve every week.”