Thirty days ago, there was little excitement in Zagreb, but the recent playoff match between Montenegro and Greece delivered thrilling water polo and fierce competition at the “Aspire home” pool.

After a grueling 32 minutes and a tense penalty shootout, the “sharks” found themselves lacking in both energy and luck, ultimately falling to Helena – 14:13 in the match for 5th to 8th place.

Konstantinos Giuvetsis appeared to have secured victory for Greece just 11 seconds before the match concluded. However, Vladimir Gojković orchestrated a brilliant play for the “Sharks”, allowing Vlado Popadić to seize the final opportunity (10:10) and push for a spot in the top five.

The players under Teodoros Vlahos enjoyed better fortune in that phase and will now compete for fifth place, while our national team awaits the loser of the Serbia – Hungary match for the seventh spot.

Today, Vladimir Gojković made the decision to have Dejan Lazović replace captain Petar Tešanović between the posts, as well as resting the injured Kanstantin Averka and Aleks Ukropin.

The first half was tightly contested, with Montenegro gaining its first lead after 11 minutes thanks to a stunning goal from Dušan Matković (4:3). Helena responded with three consecutive goals to take a 6:4 lead, while Vasilija Radović narrowed the gap to one by halftime (6:5).

The second half saw a fierce contest continue, with Gojković’s team capitalizing on their power plays, though they were occasionally thwarted by the crossbar and goalpost.

Teodoros Vlahos’s squad capitalized on these missed opportunities, netting a goal from Dimitrios Skubakis and a powerful shot from Angelos Vlahopoulos to lead 8:6 after three quarters.

Despite trailing, the “sharks” persevered, and thanks to Đur Radović and Draško Brguljan’s goals in the final eight minutes, they managed to equalize once more. The match concluded with dramatic final moments, where Vlado Popadić unfortunately could not emerge as the hero.

In the penalty shootout, Đuro Radović and Popadić missed their shots (Stefan Vidović, Miroslav Perković, and Marko Mršić found the net), while Lazović made a commendable save against Giuvetsis, but was ultimately unable to stop Janis Fudulis’ decisive shot.

The “Sharks” are set to compete for seventh place on Saturday, most likely starting at eight o’clock.

MONTENEGRO – GREECE 13:14 after five quarters (2:2, 3:4, 1:2, 4:2, 3:4)

Doha – “Aspire home”. Audience: 200. Referees: Severo (Italy), Buh (Spain). Power plays: Montenegro 10 (5), Greece 8 (4). Penalties: Montenegro 2 (1), Greece.

Montenegro: Lazović (11 saves), Brguljan 1, Perković, Mačić, Popadić 1, Vidović, Đ. Radović 3, Spaić 1, Matković 1, V. Radović 1, Tešanović, Mršić 1, Vujović 1.

Greece: Zervedas (eight saves), Genidounias, Skubakis 1, Giuvetsis 1, Fudulis 1, Papanastasiu, Gilas 1, Kakaris 3, Nikolaidis 1, Vlahopoulos 1, Corcatos, Kalogeropoulos, Papanikolaou 1.

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