Alan Nine
Volleyball.it on July 5 focused on national-team work at senior and youth level, plus another notable move in the Italian transfer market. The headline result came in Trento, where Italy men's national team closed its preparation block with a friendly win over Argentina. Elsewhere, Julio Velasco's women's squad departed for Hong Kong for the last preliminary week of the Volleyball Nations League, Pallavolo Padova announced the arrival of Iranian setter Arshia Behnezhad, and Italy's Under 18 women's team remained unbeaten at the European Championship in Riga.
International
Italy defeated Argentina 3-1 at the BTS Arena in Trento, taking the final friendly of its training period in Trentino by set scores of 36-34, 22-25, 25-19, 25-22 in front of 3,057 spectators. Volleyball.it described the match as an important test before the team leaves for Osaka, where the decisive third week of the Volleyball Nations League begins on July 11 with qualification for the Finals in Ningbo still at stake.
The article highlighted the return in blue of Simone Giannelli, Fabio Balaso, Yuri Romanò and Roberto Russo after Italy's 2025 world-title run. Mattia Bottolo and Alessandro Bovolenta both scored 14 points for the home side, while Daniele Lavia added 11. After a 45-minute opening set settled by Bottolo, Argentina leveled the match in the second, but Italy took control from the third set onward and closed the evening with Pardo Mati scoring the last point of the fourth.
Women's VNL
Italy women's national team left from Malpensa on July 5 for Hong Kong, where it will play from July 8 to 12 in the final preliminary week of the Volleyball Nations League. Volleyball.it reported that the Azzurre will meet Ukraine, Belgium, Canada and China at the Kai Tak Arena with the aim of securing mathematical qualification for the Finals in Macao, scheduled for July 22 to 26.
Julio Velasco's team travels while sitting third in the overall standings with six wins and two defeats, the only losses so far having come against the United States and Brazil. Volleyball.it also listed the 14-player squad for Hong Kong, with setters Carlotta Cambi and Alessia Orro, opposites Paola Egonu and Ekaterina Antropova, and Anna Danesi returning as captain among the central blockers.
Italian Transfer News
Pallavolo Padova officially named Arshia Behnezhad as its new starting setter for the coming season at the Kioene Arena. Volleyball.it wrote that the Iranian playmaker, born in 2003 and listed at 195 centimetres, arrives for his first professional experience abroad after already representing Iran at senior level.
The same report recalled that Behnezhad won the Under 21 World Championship in 2023 and was also awarded best setter of that tournament. For Padova, the move brings in a young international profile for a key role, with Volleyball.it framing it as a major technical addition for the club's new campaign.
International Under
Italy's Under 18 women's team collected its fourth straight win at the European Championship by beating Poland 3-0 in Riga. The set scores were 25-16, 25-19, 25-12, a result that kept the team of head coach Stefano Gregoris unbeaten in Pool I.
Volleyball.it underlined the numbers behind the performance: Italy finished with 12 winning blocks to Poland's 6, served five aces to none, and limited its total errors to 13 across the three sets. Anita Tessariol led the scoring with 16 points and a 52 percent attack rate, Lisa Monari Gamba added 15, and Bianca Legrenzi scored 12, including nine blocks. Italy's next match is scheduled for Monday, July 6 at 19:00 against host nation Latvia.
