About a year and a half ago in Split, the Serbian water polo team faced a surprising defeat at the hands of the French squad, which eliminated them in the round of 16 of the European Championship.

This setback meant that the “dolphins” needed to qualify for the EP 2024, where they sought to avenge their earlier loss to the “tricolors” and secure a spot among the continent’s top eight teams.

In a thrilling match tonight in Zagreb, Uroš Stevanović’s team triumphed with a score of 14:10, earning a place in the quarterfinals, where they are set to clash with Hungary.

Serbia jumped to an early 2:0 advantage thanks to goals from Dušan Mandić and Nemanja Vic, yet France quickly responded, even taking the lead at 4:3 and then 6:5 by the end of the third quarter.

With just a second left in that period, Mandić scored to tie the game at 6:6 during a power play, and at the beginning of the final quarter, Radomir Drašović and Nemanja Ubović pushed Serbia ahead to 8:6.

Aleksandr Bue narrowed the gap to 8:7, but Serbia never allowed France to regain momentum, consistently maintaining their lead until the final whistle.

Mandić scored four goals from five attempts, while Drašović matched that perfect record without missing a shot. Tom Vernu shone for the French team, netting three goals.

At 20:15, the Montenegrin water polo team will take to the pool, facing Germany on their path to the quarterfinals.

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