Pallanuoto Trieste and ZV De Zaan are the favourites to progress to the final of the women’s Euro Cup after establishing healthy leads in their respective semi-final first-legs. Standing in their way are Spain’s CN Tenerife Echeyde, who are hoping home advantage can help them overturn a six-goal deficit against Trieste, and ANC Glyfada iRepair, who will start their clash in Amsterdam trailing by three goals.
2024/25 Women’s Euro Cup
Semi-Finals, Second-Legs
Saturday, 15th February 2025
(Local times shown)
12:00 – CN Tenerife Echeyde (ESP) v Pallanuoto Trieste (ITA)
(First leg: 9-15)
20:30 – ZV De Zaan (NED) v ANC Glyfada iRepair (GRE)
(First leg: 9-6)
Last season’s Euro Cup runners-up Pallanuoto Trieste put one foot in the final after a strong start in the home leg helped them build a 15-9 lead against CN Tenerife Echeyde.
The Spaniards, who are making their debut in Europe this season, did hit back in the second half, and Trieste head coach Paolo Zizza has warned his players there will be no room for complacency when the two teams collide again on Saturday.
‘We must not think our six-goal advantage from the first-leg has already secured our qualification,’ insisted Zizza. ‘We will be playing at Tenerife’s home pool, in front of their supporters, and they will do everything they can to come back.
‘We want to play in the final again, and to do that we will need a performance of great defensive focus.’
If Trieste do progress, they’ll become the first team since Italy’s Racing Roma (winners in 2007 and 2008) to contest the final in two consecutive seasons.
After the first-leg loss in Trieste, Tenerife’s domestic league results have been mixed over the past three weeks – they lost at home to Terrassa (15-20) and Mataro (8-14), and beat Sant Feliu (11-8) – but the squad remains hopeful of turning the tie around.
‘We are physically, mentally and tactically prepared,’ commented Tenerife head coach Enrique Cruz. ‘This sport often produces twists and turns and this team is capable of causing a surprise.
‘Trieste are very difficult rivals that play with great pace, and have big, strong players that are powerful in the final metres and from distance, so we will need to be focused in defence throughout.
‘Our objective is to reach the final quarter with options, and we dream of a comeback together with our fans, who will surely be decisive.’
‘It’s going to be a difficult match, but we’re focused on coming back and reaching the final,’ agreed Tenerife’s Maria Ramos. ‘We’re going to go all out to make things difficult for Trieste by correcting the mistakes we made in the first leg.
‘We’ve been working hard to be in the best shape possible for this important match, and we want the fans to fill the pool and push us towards that dream final.’
Saturday’s other semi-final second-leg is a much closer affair, as Greece’s ANC Glyfada iRepair will arrive in Amsterdam looking to overturn a three-goal deficit against ZV De Zaan.
On the outskirts of Athens three weeks ago, De Zaan produced a second-half defensive masterclass as they restricted Glyfada to just one goal in the last two quarters to ensure they returned home with a 9-6 lead.
‘Our first game started a little chaotic and we made many mistakes,’ said De Zaan goalkeeper Britt van den Dobbelsteen. ‘But, in the end, our defence was solid and we were able to show how well we can play as a team.
‘I’m really looking forward to playing this second-leg at home and showing our supporters another beautiful game in the Euro Cup. We expect Glyfada to fight until the very end, but we are ready and excited for Saturday.’
If De Zaan do triumph, the final will feature a team from the Netherlands for only the third time in the tournament’s 25-year history.
On the other two occasions, De Zaan finished as runners-up in 2007 (when the club was known as Nereus), while Het Ravijn lost in the 2011 final.
Since the first-leg, Glyfada have won both of their games in Greece’s A1 division and they’re confidence will have been significantly boosted from those two emphatic victories – 16-8 against PAOK and 10-24 versus Pekev.
‘We know this is a big game, and everyone in the team is ready to step up,’ said Glyfada’s Great Britain star Lily Turner, who scored twice in the 6-9 loss to De Zaan.
‘If we stick to our game plan, we can get a good result.’
Watch the Euro Cup Women Semi-Finals on www.euroaquaticstv.com, and stay up-to-date with live results and real-time updates through the European Aquatics App. Download it here: Google Play.
