France setter Benjamin Toniutti had some back pain coming into the match, but he still managed to steer his team-mates to victory
Tokyo, Japan, May 31, 2016 – France coach Laurent Tillie was pleased as his team bounced back against Iran after their 3-2 loss to Poland, while Iran coach Raul Lozano pointed out that their opponents’ good all-round performance was their biggest problem in the match.
France coach Laurent Tillie: “It was a good match for us today. It was difficult to come back strong after our loss to Poland. Rouzier played very well today as did our setter despite some back pain. We still have not qualified for Rio, so we have to continue to play hard.”
France captain Benjamin Toniutti: “We are very happy to win the match. A win coming on the heels of a 3-2 loss is good. We switched our minds today. We believe we need 5-6 wins to get to Rio. We are already looking ahead to the next matches.”
Iran coach Raul Lozano: “We did not pass or receive well. France were better than us in all aspects of the game. They were better in service, reception and attacks. This is why the result was 3-0. Ghafour has some inflammation in his knee. We decided to rest him today and save him for tomorrow's match. He is fine.”
Iran captain Mir Saeid Marouflakrani: For the last two years, we have played France many times and always lost. They are a strong team Our sideout was the problem today. We have to forget about this match and think about our next matches.