Kraljevo, Serbia, May 27, 2018 - Wallace De Souza led the way as Brazil responded strongly to their set-back on Saturday by seeing off Germany 3-0 (26-24, 25-23, 26-24) and getting their VNL campaign back on track.
The defeat to Italy in Serbia ended a four match winning streak but the Olympic gold medallists showed their class with opposite spiker Wallace impressing by scoring 16 points and putting on a performance to send the confidence flooding back into the ranks ahead of week 3.
Isac Santos (10 points) and Eder Carbonera (five blocks and five points) were also star performers in a much improved display from the men in yellow.
Germany had their moments with Christian Fromm (17 points), Moritz Reichert (11 points) and Simon Hirsch (12 points) refusing to give in but this defeat means it’s three in a row now for the Europeans who need to regroup ahead of a meeting with China in Poland next week.
Brazil meanwhile return home to Goiania and face Korea knowing they will need to match this kind of intensity and quality if they are to reach the finals in France.
Although Germany outspiked Brazil 42-37, the South Americans were very strong at the net (10-6) but with a total of 24 errors, improvements have to be made.
Brazil’s style and warmth was well received in Serbia , especially when a big spike from wing spiker Luiz Felipe smashed his opponent in the face.
To his credit, the Brazil star immediately rushed to the other side of the net to make sure no damage had been done.
It was that type of afternoon for the Germans who were very competitive in all the sets - the first especially considering they held a 23-22 lead - yet just weren’t able to produce the finishing touches when it really mattered.
“My boys played a great game, “ said coach Andrea Giani. “But we missed too many chances. It is always the same way. We didn’t use our opportunities in the crunch time which is important to beat an opponent like Brazil.”