Alexander and Simeon Nikolovi will be teammates in Kucine Lube Civitanova, and before the start of the season they gave their first joint interview to “Gadzeta delo Sport“. The Bulgarian nationals answered the same questions and told what it means to them to play in the same club. “We dreamed of playing together in the national team, for the club team it was unexpected”, said Alexander Nikolov. His younger brother Simeon admitted that he had thought about such a development, but did not expect it to happen so soon. Alex's presence in Civitanova helped him accept Lube's offer.
Brothers and teammates
Alexander, who plays as a receiver, believes that the family relationship rather helps the two in the hall. Simeon, who is a distributor, sees another side. According to him, Alex talks to him in a way that he would not talk to another distributor, precisely because they are brothers. At the same time, this gives them an advantage, since Simeon knows well what his brother expects from the game. The two admitted that they have fought over volleyball, but according to Simeon, this has only happened once or twice. They now live together and try to leave sports disputes in the hall, although it is not always easy for them.
When asked what quality they would take from the other, Alex pointed to Moni's carefree attitude. Simeon, on the other hand, described his older brother as a “born leader” and someone you can turn to when life gets tough.
The rivalry starts in childhood
Alexander is three years older than Simeon and has long played the role of the more experienced brother. The two lived abroad because of their father Vladimir Nikolov's career and often relied on each other when they didn't speak the other children's language.
However, their closeness has not eliminated the rivalry. Alexander admitted that as a child he never understood why he had to let his brother win. Simeon confirmed that even today Alex strives for victory at all costs and is the more ambitious of the two.
The older Nikolov said that in childhood, sports were not necessarily volleyball. He just wanted to move and be among other children. For Simeon, however, volleyball was always the only choice. At first he didn't like the role of a distributor, but later he appreciated the freedom to choose how and where to play.
The goal is a trophy
The two also returned to Bulgaria's elimination by Germany in the round of 16 of the European Championship. Aleksandar described the result as disappointing, while Simeon admitted that he couldn't sleep for several nights after the match. Now their attention is focused on their first season as teammates in Italy. Aleksandar said that the period in which he was just a young player who had to learn is over and he now wants big victories and titles. Simeon expects a difficult debut in the Italian championship, but said that he is in the best shape of his life. Loube will start the season in the Super League with an away game against Rana Verona on October 17. A week later, the team will host Padova. Before these matches, the two brothers had already clearly formulated their goal: a season with an important role for the team and the opportunity to win a trophy.
Sources: gong.bg, gazzetta.it