“Cristian Savani returns to Lube Civitanova.” That was all that was posted by Gian Luca Pasini at gazetta.it. That was all that needed to be said. The former Italian captain and Olympic medalist is returning to the club where he won the Italian Serie A1 and the CEV Challenge Cup. Though he was announced as a player with BluVolley Verona back on July, 18, 2018, that was apparently just a trial. It left the door open for Lube to purchase his rights just before the close of the market.
Lube Civitanova was looking for a replacement to the Canadian Riley Barnes after an injury in training with his national team left him with a damage to the ligament in his ankle as well as a fracture. The news show that it would not necessarily be a quick recovery, so Lube looked to the Italian veteran. Fans are still awaiting an official statement from the club.
Remember that Savani was the leading outside hitter for Taiwan Excellence Latina with 347 points last year in the Italian SuperLega. He was only behind opposite Sasha Starovic in terms of point production. Savani finished as the 20th-best scorer in the regular season of the Italian SuperLega last year, though he only hit .257 with a 43.7% success rate in attack. He also contributed 0.44 blocks per set and 0.28 service aces per set.
While Savani started his career in Italy, and has a decorated career with the Italian National Team, he left Europe shortly after retiring from the national team following the 2012 Olympic Games. He has earned the following titles at the international and club levels:
- 2003 FIVB World League silver medal
- 2003 and 2005 CEV European Championships gold medals
- 2004 Olympic Games silver medal
- 2008 CEV Cup gold medal with M. Roma Volley
- 2010 CEV Challenge Cup gold medal with Sir Safety Perugia
- 2011 CEV Challenge Cup gold medal with Lube Macerata
- 2011 and 2013 CEV European Championships silver medals
- 2012 Italian Serie A1 gold medal with Lube Macerata
- 2012 Olympic Games bronze medal
- 2013 FIVB World League bronze medal
- 2014 Chinese League silver medal with Shanghai
- 2014 Asian Club Championships silver medal with Shanghai
- 2015 and 2016 Chinese League gold medals with Shanghai
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