Title-holders Recco ended their water polo Champions League Quarter Final Stage campaign in style. The Italian giants downed arch-rivals Novi Beograd with a sensational performance as they hit 15 goals – something that barely happens with the Serbs’ defence. The day’s other game saw Marseille dominate Jadran Split, but both sides still exit the competition.
Champions League Quarter Final Stage
Results, Day 6
Group A (Wednesday, 15th May 2024)
Pro Recco (ITA) 15-7 Novi Beograd (SRB)
CN Marseille (FRA) 17-10 VK Jadran Split (CRO)
Final rankings: 1. Recco 17, 2. Novi Beograd 13, 3. Marseille 6, 4. Jadran 0
Champions League Final Four
Semi-Final Fixtures
Malta (Wednesday, 5th June 2024, local times shown)
19.00: Pro Recco (ITA) v Olympiacos Piraeus (GRE)
21:00: FTC-Telekom (HUN) v Novi Beograd (SRB)
The top spot was at stake in the rematch of the last two Champions League finals between Recco and Novi Beograd.
On Day 3, Recco won after a shootout in Belgrade, but in their magnificent outdoor pool in Sori, the home side left no doubt they were by far the best team in Group A.
Creating any danger amidst the tight and tough defending in the first period was a bit of mission impossible for both sides at equal strength.
Scoring depended on the man-up conversions and Recco did a splendid job in the opening period, burying all three they earned.
Novi Beograd were finding it harder to put the ball away.
They found the back of the net in only two of the five 6 on 5s they had in the first quarter.
For a while, only Alvaro Granados was keeping up with the hosts, as he netted his third early in the second for 3-3.
Matteo Iocchi Gratta made it 4-3, again from a man-up (Recco were on target from their first four extras), while Dusko Pijetlovic hit the post from close in NBG’s next 6 on 5.
The Italians had a longer 6 on 4 (earned three exclusions in a row) and Giacomo Cannella finished it off for 5-3.
NBG managed to set up Nikola Jaksic on the 2m line to come closer, but then they faded from the scene.
Though Recco missed their first man-up of the game, they soon stole the ball back and the ensuing counter ended in a fine dunking by Aaron Younger – the first action goal of the match.
The Serbs lost their composure in attack and were unable to penetrate the home side’s defence, while Francesco Condemi fired one in from the perimeter and Gergo Zalanki sent the ball home from the penalty line eight seconds from the turnaround for a commanding 8-4 lead.
Not much changed after switching ends, as NBG missed another extra early in the third, while Gonzalo Echenique delivered from the right wing for Recco.
Granados&Co were frozen in offence, especially with Marco del Lungo posting a couple of outstanding saves as well.
When Cannella sent a rocket from a counter-like attack for 10-4, Zivko Gocic thought it was time to call a time-out.
It helped a little, as Miroslav Perkovic’s brilliant finish in a 6 on 5 ended their goal drought after 9:27 minutes and also halted Recco’s run at 5-0.
It was a short-lived surge, though, as Recco replied immediately from a 6 on 5, denied two shots in a man-down, then Ben Hallock added a beautiful one from the centre for 12-5.
In Belgrade, NBG came back from six goals down, but here a similar resurrection was never on the cards.
Indeed, Recco had turned the contest into a lopsided one by the middle of the third.
The hosts kind of considered the job done, as their concentration levels dropped significantly in the fourth, conceding two from action before netting a penatly after a little more than five minutes.
Cannella still offered something more for the fans, though, a great blast from distance, it was his 5th of the night.
Tensions were raised a bit through some minor fights which saw Nikola Jaksic red carded, then Nicholas Presciutti ended the contest with a brilliant lob for 15-7.
Apart from bidding a fine farewell to the fans, nothing was really at stake in the other match in Marseille as both teams were already eliminated from the competition.
The French giants have also finished their domestic season, retaining their title, but Jadran are in the middle of the gold medal contest in Croatia, a demanding best of three series, so their players may have had that contest on their minds.
In the game, Marseille stormed into a 6-2 lead, and even though Jadran pulled two back, the French staged a 4-0 run to decide the encounter by half-time when they led 10-5.
The third period was more balanced with three goals apiece, then Marseille edged the fourth 4-2, before friendly handshakes were offered all round.
In the end, Marseille closed their season with a high-scoring win as they kept their motivation throughout, while Jadran had to settle for a sixth loss in this stage of the competition.
The men’s Champions League Water Polo Final Four will take place on Wednesday 5th June and Friday 7th June 2024 in Malta, and you can follow all the action and results live on the dedicated European Aquatics Champions League website.
