IRAN head coach Robert Piazza admitted that their call for a last-minute challenge was one done out of impulse.
By doing so in the midst of the premature Philippine celebrations, the officials granted Iran’s request and was able to spot Malabunga’s minimal yet clear net infraction.
There wasn’t any more time to pause or regroup for Alas as the match had to resume in the absence of any more timeouts - and that proved to be the turning point for Team Melli as they eventually took a 21-25, 25-21, 17-25, 25-23, 22-20 win to advance to the final 16 of the FIVB Men's Volleyball World Championships.
Piazza didn’t even react once the Philippines had initially won the match as his mind directly shifted towards looking back on what was already a shock loss at the time.
“I didn’t even react. I was thinking just about what I have to do [after the match],” the Iran coach said.
Alas deserves to go through
While Piazza will take the win, he put the spotlight on the brave Alas Pilipinas Men -- ranked 77th in the world -- for pushing the second-highest ranked Asian squad to the limit.
In fact, he even went as far as to saying that the boys of coach Angiolino Frigoni no doubt deserves to be in the final 16.
“I’m not happy about how we played the game. Philippines played an amazing game," he said.
"They deserve to be in the [final] 16 teams like us because two points cannot change the game."
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