Krastiņš: Latvia found a way to swing the match in their favour

Latvia's national volleyball team fell to France 1-3 (12:25, 16:25, 25:22, 13:25) at the European Championship, but head coach Uģis Krastiņš expressed satisfaction that his players managed to disrupt the flow of the match.

France, missing several regular starters at the outset, dominated the first two sets with strong attacking play, reaching as high as 81% attack efficiency in the opening set, and solid defense, finishing the match with 20 blocking points overall.

In the third set, Latvia capitalized on a momentary lapse from their opponents to turn the match around. Although France brought several of its leading players back onto the court late in the set, Kristaps Šmits sealed it with an effective attack from deep in the court. France, however, regained control in the fourth set and secured the overall win.

Top scorers

Šmits led Latvia with 19 points, including two from blocks and one from a serve. Renārs Pauls Jansons added 14 points in what he called his best performance of the tournament so far, while Jānis Medenis and Gustavs Freimanis each scored 5. On the French side, four players scored at least 13 points, led by Matiss Enno and Simon Manjēns with 16 each.

Coach Krastiņš noted that after losing the first two sets, his team played with more maturity and found ways to score, including redirecting attacks more precisely. He was also surprised by the effectiveness of the team's feint hits, which yielded five points during the match. Krastiņš said facing teams of Germany's and France's caliber would help Latvia prepare for the decisive group stage matches against Switzerland and Turkey, scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday.