Short characterization BRAZIL

PLAYERS		STARTING SIX - SUBSTITUTES	RANKING 2000 - 2008
			OG 2000	6
1	REZENDE, Bruno Mossa
5	DOS SANTOS, J. Sidnei		WCH 2002	1
6	VISSOTO NEVES, Leandro
7	GODOY FILHO, Gilberto		WC 2003	1
8	ENDRES, Murilo
9	FABRICIO NERY, Theo		OG 2004	1
12	TAVARES, Joao Paulo
13	BRAVO PEREIRA, Joao P.		WCH 2006	1
14	SANTANA, Rodrigo
16	SAATKAMP, Lucas		WC 2007	1
18	AMARAL Dante Guimares
19	DA SILVA PEREIRA, J.M. (L)		OG 2008	2

General remarks about the team and about the playing-style

· Very good team performance: there were no players in top-3 of the players ranking lists of best scorers, setters, servers, spikers, diggers and liberos.

· Murilo was second of best receivers (eff. % 69.11) and Rodrigo was no. 3 of best blockers (26 kill-blocks). Murilo was MVP of the tournament.

· Stable starting line-up.

· Good performance in Complex I and Complex II.

· Athletic good developed players.

· Very good (quick) attacking and good blocking and defense performance.

· Technical and tactical adaptation in individual playing actions.

· Efficient and fluent playing.

· Emotion based motivation.

· Effective playing structures with quick setting.

· Good combination of universal playing abilities and individual strength.

· Good application of modern scouting information.

Serve  

· All the players have one standard skill: jump float, jump spin or jump power serve

· Sometimes tactical variation of serve positions.

· Major goals are: tactical effect, no direct point, let the opponent make the errors.

· Good tactical adaptation to subsequent block/defence situation.

Serve reception

· Stable and secure reception, only sometimes instable.

· Three players in reception formation.

· Murilo seems to be more important in reception than libero Mario.

· Before the ball passes the net receivers are in good position.

· In case of jump spin serve by opponent: starting position of the players is deeper; when the ball is played, often impulse control or punch technique (side- and backwards) is used; the arms of the service-passer move to the floor.

· Variants of all other reception techniques are used: 3-point-reception, lateral, jumping

or falling forward, backward and sideways.

• Much use of overhead reception on (jump)float serve.

Set/Attack - Complex I and Complex II

• Easy and quick steps of the setter from starting position to target.
• During the steps moving with front or with back in the direction of the net, depending of the situation, for instance: from pos 4 with back, from pos. 5 with front;
• Adjustment by little steps from target to playing position.
• If necessary setter is using the new rules of permitted penetration under and contact with the net.
• Strategy is to play quick attack and jump sets. The setter is in the right time on the right place and in the right position.
• Jump sets with take-off and landing with both feet or sometimes running and underhand setting.
• Always taking the ball as high as possible by both hands or if necessary by one hand and sometimes a surprising tip-shot (“dunk”).
• Quick and precise sets from nearly all the positions in the court.
• All attackers are in last step of approach when setter contacts the ball.
• Effective structured attacks in Complex I: using specific individual signals before variation of setting: tempo and positions and effective set-distribution, with very secure quick attacks, to the middle player as well as to the players in position 4 and 2 and back row combination attacks incorporated in reception.
• In Complex II, based on good blocking and defense performance, transitions with effective variation of quick and sometimes high attacks. Incorporating back row attack combinations, playing back sets to pos. 1 for instance from position 5, when Murilo makes switch to this position in rally play. In transition from the block to offense the middle player Lucas (starting from position 2, 3 meterline) gets quick backsets, be-hind the setter Bruno.

• Free ball-attack: variable pass distribution with a trend towards „quick outside attack from position 4“, sometimes pipe-combination and quick backsets.

Block and Defense

· Efficiency and good organization of team blocking.

· Tactical adaptation of blocking based on statistics and tactical analysis of opponent.

· Different step variations, blocking position adapted to the playing situation.

· Good level of block performance: kill blocks and rebounds.

· Fast, strong and skillfull middle blockers, securing tactical tip balls as well (2^nd phase block action).

· Efficient cooperation and synchrony in movement of the blockers and diggers.

· High level of individual and team performance in defense (digging and emergency skills).