Alas Pilipinas men ‘still very far’ from high level, admits new coach

New Alas Pilipinas men’s team coach Angiolino Frigoni during the SEA VLeague. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines — Italian coach Angiolino Frigoni admitted that Alas Pilipinas is still “very far from a high level” one year before the Philippines’ hosting and participation in the 2025 FIVB Men’s Volleyball World Championship. 

Frigoni was happy with his winning debut, saying he didn’t expect Alas Pilipinas “to play this good” after overcoming Vietnam, 25-21, 25-22, 18-25, 25-23, in the SEA VLeague first leg opener in front of a good home crowd on Friday at Ninoy Aquino Stadium.

But the 70-year-old coach kept it real in terms of the country’s level on the world stage, which will be its biggest event next year.

SCHEDULE: Alas Pilipinas men’s at SEA VLeague first leg

“I think we are very far from the high level. We have to compete at this level now. Maybe in the future, we can be better, but now this is our level. While we want to be better for another level, we have to win at this level,” Frigoni told reporters.

The Italian coach, who replaced Sergio Veloso, said ending the six-game winning drought in the SEA VLeague is the start of a long process for the program.

“It’s not that we can start from here and go there. We have to go step-by-step. And if we show, because it’s just the first match that we played here and we have to play the other two matches, if we show that we can play against them, then okay it’s a good start,” he said.

Frigoni, a two-time Olympian head coach for the Italian women’s team in the 1992 Barcelona and 2000 Sydney games, said that he can’t predict the future of this young squad, which has an average age of 23, but he vowed to scratch the surface of the Filipinos’ potential.

READ: Alas Pilipinas men beat Vietnam in SEA VLeague Manila opener

“I am not a god. I am a coach, so I cannot see what will be in the future,” said the new Alas coach. “Now, we will see. They are still young players, some still playing in the university. Now, I’m here and I’ll try to make them better and we will see what happens in the future.”

Frigoni said that all the players have to cooperate and work on the same page for them to compete at a high level in the World Championship next year and the SEA Games.

“I think that we have to get better, every one of them, they have to get a little bit better in every situation. But I can see that there is a potential here. There is no potential to compete for the first team in the world, but now we are at this level and there is a potential to compete at this level,” he said.

Frigoni and Alas seek to at least a silver medal with a second win against defending champion Indonesia on Saturday.