Montenegro faces Serbia once again, marking their fourth encounter. This time, the “lions” are eager to leave Munich on a high note, aiming not only for victory but also to secure the top position ahead of the qualifiers for the 2025 World Cup.

The Montenegrin handball team will play their final match at the European Championship tomorrow (Tuesday at 18:00) against their northern rivals, who are still vying for a spot in the knockout stage.

“Serbia has proven to be a formidable team, and competing against them won’t be easy… They have excellent pivots, wings, and goalkeepers, making it challenging for us to adapt to their Spanish-style gameplay,” cautioned our right back, Stefan Čavor.

However…

“We’ve demonstrated in these two matches that we can compete against strong national teams. I believe we have the potential to perform even better, and our progress is gradual since we are a young national team. We are definitely on the right path,” stated the German Wecler handball player.

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The last official match between Montenegro and Serbia occurred during the EP 2016 qualifiers. Serbia claimed victory in Belgrade (25:21), while the match in Bar ended in a tie (25:25). In their most recent encounter at the EP in Graz 2020, the “Lions” triumphed with a score of 22:21.

After two rounds, Montenegro still stands without points, although they deserved more in their matches against Hungary and Iceland, where they had opportunities to equalize…

“We’ve had two tough games, but I think we performed quite well in both. It’s truly unfortunate and disappointing that we didn’t advance to the next stage. However, we still have the game against Serbia, which is crucial for the World Cup playoffs. We want to conclude the championship with a win,” Čavor emphasized.

What factors led to the matches slipping away from the “lions”?

“Both games were close until the very end, but I believe we can significantly improve with some adjustments,” Čavor expressed.

The Montenegrin defender provided specific insights…

“In the first match, we made numerous technical errors; in the second, it was fewer—thanks to Nebojša Simić, we remained competitive throughout. Nonetheless, I think our defense could have been stronger against Iceland, and we needed to adhere to our strategies better. But that’s handball; it’s a sport, and mistakes will always happen. We strive to learn from them,” Čavor concluded.

In their previous three official matches against Serbia, the “Lions” recorded every possible result—having lost in Belgrade during the 2016 European Championship qualifiers (25:21), drawn in Bar (25:25), and won their encounter in Graz 2020 (22:21), marking Montenegro’s first victory in European Championship history.

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