Portugal's Alex Ferreira spikes against the block of Cuba's Adrian Goide and Luis Sosa.
Tampere, Finland, July 3, 2016 – Cuba persevered to seal a 3-2 (25-19, 22-25, 25-19, 20-25, 15-9) victory over Portugal on the last day of the FIVB Volleyball World League 2016 Group 2 pool phase. Portugal finished bottom of Group 2, but will hosting the finals next week in Matosinhos.
Francisco Santos, coach of Portugal: “I am not very happy. Cuba had few problems in reception and when we served well we got some advantage. Cuba are a very good team in attacking. We should have been better at serving. Our work has been preparation for the Final Four. In these matches we have used many players to prepare for the finals, where our goal is to win the tournament.”
Miguel Tavares, player of Portugal: “This was a tough game. It was our third match here. We have travelled a lot in three weeks and the players are a bit tired. This was not the result we were looking for. As organizer, our team is already qualified for the finals and now we must clear our minds for next weekend.”