Hiroshima, Japan, September 13, 2015 - Glen Lorenzo Blengini said it was good to get a positive result after Italy's loss to Japan as they followed up with victory over Japan.
Italy coach Gian Lorenzo Blengini: "I am satisfied with the result. This was great for us. We didn't have much time to prepare this team. After losing to the USA like we did, this is a milestone for us. We have to continue figuring out how to do the basics. Yanagida, Ishikawa and Shimizu are all good servers. They have good variations on their serves. I think Yanagid is one of the best at a high level."
Japan coach Masashi Nambu: "We started fairly well in the first set and had a good sideout. We were not able to score on counterattack. They marked Shimizu well. We were completely blocked on the right side behind the setter. Their service put us in disarray. We must overcome strong serves. We have to review and reinforce dealing with them. We have to go for a strategy where we can attack and score."
Italy captain Simone Buti: "We knew Japan was a good team. We played well today. We devised countermeasures for Japan and they worked well. We found our rhythm early in the match."
Italy player Simone Giannelli: "I think I played well. The team played well. We fought heard. The home crowd made it tough on us."
Japan captain Kunihiro Shimizu: "The serves of our opponents were really good. We need to have better service attack and avoid being blocked. I could not serve and spike today. We need to player better. We want to get Japan back in good shape so we can compete with strong teams like Italy."
Japan player Yuki Ishikawa: "Italy's service was really good. We could not hold our ground. They played better in the third set. We hope to improve in the Osaka round."
Japan player Masahiro Yanagida: "Our serve was not great in the first and second sets. We could not kee our patience and they scored many points in a row. We could not find the flow of the game. We need a more attacking serve."