The Yellow Tigers lost their third match of the second Volleyball Nations League week in Ankara. After their strong performance against Brazil, Belgium were unable to reach the same level against Germany. The Germans proved superior, particularly with their serving pressure and block-defense organisation, and claimed a deserved 0-3 victory. The set scores were 20-25, 19-25 and 21-25.

Head coach Kris Vansnick once again started Britt Herbots and Tea Radovic. Germany took an early advantage and moved ahead 2-4 thanks to strong serving pressure. At 4-8, Vansnick was forced to call an early timeout. With Herbots at the service line, the Yellow Tigers fought their way back to 8-9, but Germany continued to apply pressure and extended the gap again to 10-15. Nel Demeyer, who had come into the match, brought Belgium level again at 15-15 with a strong serving run. The Tigers, however, were unable to push on. Germany restored the gap at 16-19. The Belgian women were unable to reproduce the level they had shown a day earlier against Brazil. Germany continued to dominate and took the opening set 20-25.

For the second set, Demeyer replaced Radovic in the line-up. Belgium also played with two liberos. Germany once again made the stronger start and immediately moved ahead 0-3. The Yellow Tigers fought back to 6-6, but the Germans regained control afterwards. A strong block-defense organisation combined with heavy serving pressure made scoring extremely difficult for the Belgian attack. Several long rallies eventually all went Germany’s way. A second Belgian timeout followed at 9-17. The Tigers kept fighting and won a rally lasting more than a minute at 14-20, giving the team renewed energy. An ace from Saar Bertels reduced the deficit to 15-20 and forced Germany into a timeout. The German side remained composed, however, and did not allow Belgium back into the set. After leading 16-23, Germany also secured the second set 19-25.

In the third set, Belgium returned to the starting line-up that began the match, with Debouck as the only libero. Both teams stayed level in the opening phase and at 7-7 there was still no separation. The match remained evenly balanced for a long time afterwards. Up to 14-14 neither team was able to create a gap. Germany then opened up a three-point lead at 14-17. The Yellow Tigers reduced the deficit to 18-20 but could not get any closer. Germany extended the lead to 19-23 and then professionally closed out the match. The third set also went Germany’s way at 21-25, securing a 0-3 victory.

Disappointment was evident in the Belgian camp after the match, although the focus quickly shifted towards Sunday’s final match of the week against France.

Captain Britt Herbots reflected on a difficult evening for the Yellow Tigers. “This was one of those matches where things simply didn’t come together for us. Germany is a strong team that plays with a lot of discipline, and that is something we can still improve on ourselves. Our own system did not work the way we wanted today and we need to sharpen that up again as quickly as possible. Of course, there is disappointment after this defeat.

I do not want to make excuses, but the busy match schedule naturally plays a role for everyone. Three matches in a row are tough, but that is the case for every team and it cannot be used as an explanation for our performance today. We know this is the rhythm of a summer with the Volleyball Nations League and the European Championship. Fortunately, we now have a rest day to recover and regain energy. France will once again be a physical and strong opponent. There are no easy matches in this competition. Every team is well prepared and has a lot of quality. That is why we need to focus on ourselves and on our own game. That is the most important thing right now.”

Head coach Kris Vansnick also acknowledged Germany’s quality. “First of all, I would like to congratulate Germany. They played an excellent match and showed a great example of how a team should defend and play organised volleyball. For our group, this is another important learning experience. Of course, this defeat hurts. The players will be disappointed, but at the same time we need to learn from matches like this. Just like against Czechia, we faced a team today that knew exactly what it needed to do to beat us. We now have a day to analyse this match and then all our focus has to shift towards France. That will once again be a very important match.”

Belgium will conclude the second VNL week on Sunday with a match against France.

Played for Belgium: Van Sas (2), Herbots (7), Lemmens (4), Radovic (5), Martin (16), Fransen (6), Rampelberg

Substitutes: Bertels (1), Koulberg (2), Nagels, Debouck, Deleu, Maes (1)