Montpellier (AFP)

A two-time world champion, Poland is a scarecrow of the Euro-2019 volleyball tournament that starts Thursday, especially since it has strengthened this summer with the arrival of the best player in the world, the Cuban naturalized Wilfredo Leon.

Absent the last square of the continental competition since 2011 (3rd) and the highest step since 2009, Poland will want to restore its position in the European hierarchy, for this first tournament to 24 disputed in four different countries (France, Belgium, Slovenia , The Netherlands), faced with extremely dense competition, led by Russia.

. The Polish ogre

The Belgian Vital Heynen, Poland coach, announced the current color May: the summer priority of his selection was to ensure the qualification as soon as possible for the Tokyo Olympics, they who had been penalized in 2016 , like France, by a late qualification for Rio.

After an endless League of Nations from the end of May to mid-July and finished in 3rd place with a team largely reworked, the Poles got down to the Olympic qualifying tournament.

Untouchable at home in Gdansk in early August, somewhat helped by a program with small onions, the Poles severely corrected France to validate the Warsaw-Tokyo ticket in July 2020. With in their ranks the best player in the world, the Cuban naturalized Wilfredo Leon, just allowed to wear the red and white jersey.

It is strong of this confidence and released from the Olympic pressure that Poland goes to the Netherlands for the 1st round of the Euro, favorite of a group with main competitors the Dutch and the Czechs.

. Ambitious Russia and Italy

In the same situation as Poland, Russia has validated at home the Tokyo ticket mid-August, in a slightly lower tournament, and will present itself in Ljubljana with in its purse the trophies of the League of Nations 2018 and 2019.

In Slovenia, the Russians should take the first place in the group against less adversity, with the 8th and quarterfinals higher.

At home in August, Italy outperformed Serbia to qualify for Tokyo-2020. Italy coach Gianlorenzo Blengini relied on the players present in Bari to form his group for the Euro, "very long tournament (two and a half weeks) compared to the TQO in Bari," he said.

With Bulgaria's Tsvetan Sokolov and France's Earvin Ngapeth, the fight for the first place in the group in Montpellier will be fierce, between three teams who can claim the European podium, knowing that the first four of the four groups enter the round of 16 .

The Italians, dominators of European volleyball in the 1990s and 2000s will want to regouter the continental gold that escapes them since 2005.

. Outsiders France and Serbia

Of the four host countries of the competition, France is the one who presents the best-equipped team to go far and join the legendary arena of Paris-Bercy for the final weekend, despite small physical glitches during the final phase of the competition. preparation.

His star Earvin Ngapeth, highlighted on the posters of the organization, will miss at least the first three matches of the first round in Montpellier (south), against Romania Thursday, Greece Saturday and Portugal Sunday.

His presence for both shocks, against Bulgaria (Monday) and Italy (Wednesday 18), is also uncertain, due to a muscle injury in the ribs, injury contracted to warm up before the final match of preparation against Germany.

Private Serbia Olympic ticket by an impressive Italy in Bari, will want to take revenge with a first round in Brussels and Antwerp, and a first game against Germany, vice-champion of Europe in 2017, in the form of a big test for his claims.

© 2019 AFP