Gulinelli out to end Egypt's eight years wait for African title
Egypt's Italian coach Flavio Gulinelli reacts on the touchline during their 2023 CAVB Men’s African Nations Championship quarter-final match against Morocco at Cairo International Stadium on September 9, 2023.
What you need to know:
- Algeria coach Bernaoui Krimo said his side was elated to have reached the final after missing the previous edition held in 2021 in Rwanda. However, he termed Algeria as underdogs despite their unbeaten run to the final.
- “When we came for this competition, we wanted to show people that Algerian volleyball still exists after missing the last edition.
In Cairo, Egypt
Flavio Gulinelli is a man on a mission as he leads Egypt in the final of the African Nations Championship against Algeria Wednesday.
It will be a night of many firsts for the vastly travelled Italian coach whose career spans 35 years. He will be looking to guide Egypt to their ninth African title, the first in eight years since they won the 2015 edition here in Cairo.
Victory will mean Gulinelli gets his first African title in his maiden appearance in this championship as coach.
And the 65-year-old Italian is glad he will be facing a familiar opponent in Algeria, the only team to have beaten the hosts in this year’s tournament, a 3-0 hiding in Pool A that saw the Pharaohs finish second in the group.
Since then, the Egyptians have leapt from strength to strength beating Kenya and Morocco in straight sets before booking a place in the final with a laboured 3-1 semi-final win over Cameroon on Monday.
“This will be a tough match just like the Cameroon game. We were not at our best during the pool but they were very consistent. We now know each other a little bit better and I hope that it will be a good match and the hall will be full.
“We want to show the fans that the level of this championship is high and deserves the attention of all volleyball fans,” Gulinelli told Nation Sport.
The 3-1 win over Cameroon brought Egypt to within touching distance of Tunisia on the FIVB rankings with the Pharaohs ranked 19th and the record African champions 18th.
Victory in the final could see Egypt go ahead of Tunisia in the FIVB rankings and open up the possibility of them being Africa’s representatives at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
Egypt's outside hitter Ahmed Shafik celebrates a point during their 2023 CAVB Men’s African Nations Championship semi-final match against Cameroon at Cairo International Stadium on September 11, 2023.
In his first stint as Egypt coach between December 2015 and May 2016, Gulinelli won the African qualifiers for the Rio 2016 Olympics but did not attend the Summer Games after falling out with then Egyptian Volleyball Federation President Fouad Abdelsalam.
“To be honest, I came here just because of the Olympic dream. I qualified this team for the Rio Olympics but couldn’t be with the team. I want to win the African Championship but our ultimate dream is the Olympic Games.
“The players are ready to actualize it and this could be the cherry on the cake. I am getting a little older and this could allow me to go and enjoy my pension,” said Gulinelli, who will guide Egypt to the Paris 2024 Olympic qualification tournament set for September 30 to October 8.
Egypt’s journey to the final has been fuelled by the consistency of outside hitter Ahmed Shafik and opposite Haikal Reda in attack.
The pair started from the bench in the preliminary match against Algeria but will certainly start in the final after tallying 25 and 17 points respectively in the semi-final against Cameroon.
However, Gulinelli insists that mental strength will determine who emerges champion tonight.
“It will be difficult not only from the technical and tactical point of view but also mentally. We need to learn from the Cameroon game and put more attention to both positive and negative moments,” said Gulinelli, who hopes outside hitter Ahmed Afifi will shake off a knock and be available for today’s final.
Algeria coach Bernaoui Krimo reacts on the touchline during their 2023 CAVB Men’s African Nations Championship quarter-final match against Rwanda at Cairo International Stadium on September 9, 2023.
Algeria coach Bernaoui Krimo said his side was elated to have reached the final after missing the previous edition held in 2021 in Rwanda. However, he termed Algeria as underdogs despite their unbeaten run to the final.
“When we came for this competition, we wanted to show people that Algerian volleyball still exists after missing the last edition.
“There are now only two teams in the final so we have no pressure. We just want to do our job on the court. We have sacrificed a lot this summer to prepare for this competition and we hope to win this title.
“The first match (against Egypt) was just about qualifying for the knockout stage. The final will be different and we have to be ready psychologically and physically. We already have the ticket to the World championship so winning the cup will be a bonus for us,” said Krimo.
Cameroon will clash with Libya in the bronze medal match at 4pm with a ticket to the 2025 FIVB World Championship at stake.
Wednesday fixture
Third place
Cameroon v Libya 4pm
Final
Egypt v Algeria 7pm
