| In Budapest on Saturday night, FTC-Telekom will look to extend the Champions League winners’ absolute dominance in the history of men’s Super Cup finals. Standing in their way are VK Jug Adriatic Osiguranje, the Croatian Euro Cup victors. Since the restart of this fabulous contest in 2002, the European champions are 20-1 up in the finals. The lonely triumph for the Euro Cup winners came in 2018 – ironically by Ferencvaros, who edged out Olympiacos Piraeus in a thrilling shootout in the Komjadi Pool, which is also the site of this year’s grand final. As Norbert Madaras, European Aquatics Bureau Member and the President of the Hungarian Water Polo Federation, recalled at the pre-match press conference, that 2018 triumph marked the start of a golden era for Ferencvaros, where he was the chair back then. Before sharing further memories, Madaras emphasised that the upcoming final is, “A grand celebration of water polo. Besides the Champions League final, the Super Cup final is the other top event of all our club competitions.” As a player, Madaras competed in many finals, and he commented, “Sadly, my last final ended in defeat, and I was one of the players who missed their penalty in the shootout, and that prevented Ferencvaros from lifting the Super Cup trophy in 2017.” However, FTC won back-to-back Super Cups in 2018 and 2019, pushing their total to four triumphs, which is second in the all-time rankings behind Pro Recco’s nine victories. Since the Hungarians beat the Italian giants in an epic Champions League final in June, they earned the right to play another Super Cup final. As their goalkeeper Soma Vogel put it, “Playing in Saturday’s final is a wonderful opportunity, and it is a gift from last season’s team to the current team. “Of course, we all had to fight a lot for that gift and the trophy is not for free, so this team will have to put up another big fight to win.” Vogel also added that despite being the Champions League winners, his team will not be taking anything for granted. “We are preparing for this game while keeping in mind the outcome could be decided in the last period, the last minute, the last possession, or even a shootout.” Jug captain Toni Popadic, who is also the goalkeeper of his team, is hoping his players can cause problems for the favourites. “We expect we can play a good game with Ferencvaros, who are one of the best teams, if not the best water polo team right now. “A final like this is one of the best things in a player’s career, where he can grow and achieve great things. I hope we can put Ferencvaros to some trouble in the game.” What gives Saturday’s highly-anticipated final a special flavour is the calendar of the ongoing new season, as while Jug have already played several European ties – first in the Champions League qualifiers then in the Euro Cup – Ferencvaros have only had two league games, so that might have an impact on who lifts the coveted trophy. “This is a small advantage, and the only advantage for us is that we started the season a little bit earlier,” commented Jug coach Vjekoslav Kobescak. “Ferencvaros are a really strong team that won the Champions League last season, and with the players they have, they are the absolute favourites to win it again. “But we are not here to watch them marching to lift the trophy. We want to have a good game and we will try to win the final, as this is the first trophy of the season and it’s really important.” Balazs Nyeki, who led FTC to a treble in his first season as head coach of the team while posting a 40-1 winning ratio across all competitions, is aware that at the beginning of the season, his team may not be on top form. “I’m happy we had such a great season that ended with lifting the Champions League trophy. However, right away after that triumph, I told my players we need to clinch the Super Cup as well. “So, we have to beat Jug to make our silverware collection complete. We could dominate all our matches in the Komjadi Pool last season and we want to do the same this season. “Of course, this is not the same team and we are at the start of the season when you have to do a lot of fine-tuning, and even though we’ve had a good joint training camp with Marseille, it’s not the same as when you play official games. “Still, I trust in my players that their class will prevail.” European Super Cup Final Saturday, 20.00 CET FTC-Telekom Budapest (HUN) v Jug Adriatic Osiguranje Dubrovnik (CRO) |
