Plovdiv, Bulgaria, June 27, 2019 - Iran claimed a four set victory against Serbia on Friday in Pool 19 of the 2019 men's FIVB Volleyball Nations League in Plovdiv.
Iran-Serbia
Bulgaria-USA
Pre-match stats:
Iran - Serbia (June 28, 2019)
Head-to-head
· Serbia (incl. predecessors) have won five of nine major encounters with Iran at world level.
· World level major competitions are: FIVB Volleyball Nations League, Olympic Games, World Championship, World Cup, World League and Grand Champions Cup.
· This includes their meeting in the FIVB Volleyball Nations League last season, which was won 3-2 by Serbia in United States.
· Serbia could establish their first three-match winning streak against Iran in major competitions.
Iran
· Iran are coming off a straight sets defeat against France, their first as such in the division this season.
· Iran have not lost back-to-back VNL matches at any point this season. They dropped two in a row on three occasions last season.
· Amir Ghafour (182) is 11 points shy of equalling Milad Ebadipour Ghara H's total of 193 points as Iran's top scorer in 2018 in the VNL.
· Mir Saeid Marouflakrani (average 8.81) has the highest average as setter in the 2019 VNL.
Serbia
· Serbia lost all three of their VNL matches in Week 4, after winning all three in Week 3.
· Serbia have won five of their 12 VNL matches this season and can no longer equal the number of wins they had in the preliminary round last season (11).
· Lazar Cirovic leads Serbia in scoring in this year's VNL on 114 points. In 2018, Drazen Luburic was Serbia's top scorer in the preliminary round on 152 points.
Bulgaria - United States (June 28, 2019)
Head-to-head
· Bulgaria have won 14 of their 26 major encounters at world level with United States.
· World level major competitions are: FIVB Volleyball Nations League, Olympic Games, World Championship, World Cup, World League and Grand Champions Cup.
· United States have won nine of their last 11 major encounters at world level with Bulgaria, after winning only three of their first 15 meetings with Bulgaria on a major stage.
· Their Nations League meeting last season was won 3-1 by United States in Ningbo, China.
Bulgaria
· Bulgaria are coming off a five-sets victory over Germany.
· Bulgaria have won three of their last 11 VNL matches and all three needed a fifth and deciding set.
· Rozalin Penchev is Bulgaria's top scorer this VNL season, on 108 total points. Last year, Nikolay Uchikov amassed a team-high total of 169 points in the preliminary round.
· Svetoslav Gotsev is among the best blockers in the 2019 VNL, averaging 0.51 stuff blocks per set.
United States
· United States have won seven of their 12 VNL matches this season and can no longer equal their wins total in the preliminary round last season (11).
· As hosts of the Final Round, United States are assured of progress even though they are ranked outside the top six going into Week 5.
· On 108 points, Benjamin Patch is USA's top scorer this VNL campaign. Garrett Muagututia follows on 100 total points.
· Last year, Benjamin Patch totalled 101 points in the preliminary round, ranking him third for USA behind Matthew Anderson (166) and Aaron Russell (128).