Bulgarian volleyball champions Levski have ended their Champions League campaign. The Blues lost 0:3 (20:25, 25:27, 23:25) to Mladost Zagreb in the home second-leg match of the tournament’s second qualifying round. In the first meeting a week ago, the Croatian team won 3:1 in sets and secured progress with two victories.
Nikolay Zhelyazkov’s players started the opening set evenly, but in the closing stages the visitors managed to build a 20:17 lead and closed out the set at 25:20.
The second set proved decisive for the outcome of the match. Levski had an excellent opportunity to level the score after taking an 8:13 lead, and subsequently increased their advantage to 18:12. At 22:17, the hosts appeared close to victory, but Mladost Zagreb found the strength to turn the set around. The Bulgarian champions missed three opportunities to win the set and ultimately suffered a dramatic 25:27 defeat.
The third set was again closely contested. The score was tied at 21:21, but the Croatian side scored four consecutive points and brought the match to an end after 79 minutes of play at Levski Sofia Hall.
Kristiyan Titriyski was the top scorer for the Bulgarian champions with 14 points. Former international Todor Skrimov added 13. For the visitors, Ivan Zhelkovich also finished with 14 points. Nearly 500 spectators watched the match.
Following their elimination from the Champions League, Levski will continue their European campaign in the CEV Cup, where Swiss side Hünenberg will be the Bulgarian team’s opponent.