Olympiacos is back to the Olympos after 14 years

After 14 years, Olympiacos Piraeus (GRE) clinched its second title in the Champions League after upsetting 8-time winner Pro Recco (ITA) in its own pool. Tremendous goalkeeping from Josip Pavic, Ioannis Fountoulis’ outstanding shooting form and exceptionally effective play in man-ups brought the win for the Greeks. Barceloneta (ESP) came third after beating Jug (CRO) with ease in the bronze medal match.

Spandau (white cap) vs Brescia (blue cap) 12 VUKCEVIC Nikola, 3 GIELEN Lucas LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 09/06/2018 Final 7-8 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Barceloneta (white cap) vs Jug Dubrovnik (blue cap) 9 TAHULL COMPTE Roger LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 09/06/2018 Final 3-4 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

VLACHOS Thodoris Coach Olympiacos Final Olympiacos Piraeus (White Cap) Vs. l Pro Recco (Blue Cap) LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Olympiacos celebrating the Champions League victory Final Olympiacos Piraeus (White Cap) Vs. l Pro Recco (Blue Cap) LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Spandau (white cap) vs Brescia (blue cap) 10 BERTOLI Zeno LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 09/06/2018 Final 7-8 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Eger (white cap) vs Szolnoki (blue cap) 11 BEDO Krisztian LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 09/06/2018 Final 5-6 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Barceloneta (white cap) vs Jug Dubrovnik (blue cap) Team Barceloneta LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 09/06/2018 Final 3-4 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Barceloneta (white cap) vs Jug Dubrovnik (blue cap) 12 BUSTOS SANCHEZ Alejandro LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 09/06/2018 Final 3-4 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Olympiacos (white cap) vs Pro Recco (blue cap) 1 PAVIC Josip LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 09/06/2018 Final Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Olympiacos (white cap) vs Pro Recco (blue cap) VUJASINOVIC Vladimir Head Coach Pro Recco LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 09/06/2018 Final Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Olympiacos (white cap) vs Pro Recco (blue cap) Team Olympiacos Gold Medal LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 09/06/2018 Final Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Eger (white cap) vs Szolnoki (blue cap) 3 RASOVIC Strahinja LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 09/06/2018 Final 5-6 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Eger (white cap) vs Szolnoki (blue cap) 9 CUCKOVIC Uros, 11 KIS Gabor, 1MITROVIC Branislav LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 09/06/2018 Final 5-6 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Olympiacos celebrating the Champions League victory Final Olympiacos Piraeus (White Cap) Vs. l Pro Recco (Blue Cap) LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Olympiacos celebrating the Champions League victory Final Olympiacos Piraeus (White Cap) Vs. l Pro Recco (Blue Cap) LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Barceloneta (white cap) vs Jug Dubrovnik (blue cap) 6 GARCIA GADEA Javier LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 09/06/2018 Final 3-4 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Olympiacos (white cap) vs Pro Recco (blue cap) 1 PAVIC Josip Best Player LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 09/06/2018 Final Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Though Recco was ready to further improve its record of 8 titles in the Champions League, Olympiacos’s game plan worked perfectly and that ruined the Italians’ party in front of 2,500 fans in Genoa.

Both teams arrived with one single defeat in the entire season (including all competitions), without doubt these two sides were the best in Europe this year – but one of them had to face a second and rather painful defeat this evening.

It turned out to be Recco – the home team never led in the final, the style of the match favoured the Greeks for most of the time. The most crucial phase came around the middle break: Filip Filipovic’s ball Pavic’s head from a penalty which would have given Recco a 4-5 lead just before the middle break. Instead, Olympiacos opened the second half with a couple of stunning shots from the distance in 40 seconds for a 6-4 lead which led to the substitution of veteran goalie Stefano Tempesti. Recco overcame its problems and climbed back to 6-6, however, the Greeks were very composed in man-ups and after a rare miss they converted their 6 on 5 in the most important moment, 47 second before the last break for a 7-6 lead.

In the fourth they marched on, Ioannis Fountoulis was on target twice, he netted 4 in this match and the Greeks were 9-6 up with 4:11 to go. Recco pulled one back but couldn’t score any more as Pavic delivered one save after the other. The Croatian Olympic champion finished the game with an astonishing 68.4% saving percentage. He posted 70+ percentages in the previous two games so he was rightfully named the MVP of the Final Eight.

This was the Greeks’ second Champions League title after 2002 – in fact, they are master in defeating the home teams as they beat Honved (HUN) 14 years ago in Budapest. The 13th final didn’t bring luck to Recco, after 7 wins in classical final matches this was their 6th defeat (their first title was clinched in a round-robin tournament).

As for the other placements, Barceloneta was much fresher than Jug in the bronze medal match and upended the Croats with ease (14-8). Szolnok also did a clean job while beating fellow Hungarian Eger for the 5th place (10-6) while Brescia (ITA) claimed the 7th place after downing Spandau (GER) 14-10 in a match which saw a 4min expulsion apiece for brutality.

LEN’s premium club water polo competition will return in the same format next year – the Final Eight tournament will be staged in Hannover (GER).

Game descriptions

Champions League Final
Olympiacos Piraeus (GRE) v Pro Recco (ITA) 9-7

Both sides missed a man-up at the beginning then Olympiacos opened the scoring when Paulo Obradovic blasted the ball from the back over the head of Stefan Tempesti to convert a 6 on 5. The equaliser came soon, Dusan Mandic, who struggled with his shots in the previous two games, now managed to net his first of the weekend from a fine action shot. Olympiacos made its following man-up too, this time the other Croat, Andro Buslje dunked the ball in from close range for 2-1, with 42 seconds before the first break.

The Greeks missed a great chance to double their lead when their top scorer Konstantinos Genidounias couldn’t put away the ball from a 6 on 4 (his shot was well blocked). Recco made the simple man-up at the other end, Guillermo Molina tipped the ball in from close, with his left (though he is right-handed).

The Greeks remained composed in man-ups, Alexandros Gounas netted one after a time-out but Alexandar Ivovic copied Mandic’s goal to make it 3-3, but Olympiacos buried its 4th man-up in a row, this time Ioannis Fountoulis’ precise shot found the back of the net. On the contrary, Recco missed back-to-back 6 on 5s, Pavic made a tremendous save in the second but he couldn’t have a hand on Francesco di Fulvio’s shot which brought the sides back to even once more at 4-4. Recco could have gone ahead but Filipovic hit Pavic on his head from a penalty.

The Greeks began the second period in a stunning mood, in 40 seconds Fountoulis, then Dervisis sent a bouncing shot from the right-back position to the net, gaining a 6-4 lead and forcing Vlado Vujasinovic to substitute his veteran goalie Stefano Tempesti. Di Fulvio brought back life to the packed stands by converting a man-up then Olympiacos missed its 6 on 5, the first one since ages…, but Pavic did his job in their goal, he stopped Echenique’s one on one, then Bodegas’ close-range shot from a man-up. Still, the Greek attacks lacked the dynamism at this stage and soon it was equal again, as Jacopo Alesiani scored a brilliant counter-attack goal (6-6). Credit goes to the Greeks that they could stay calm and Genidounias found his better shots in the best moment, 47 seconds before the last break to give the lead back to his team at 7-6.

Recco missed a crucial extra at the beginning of the fourth, Pavic posted his 12th save in the game, while Olympiacos was back to normal as Fountoulis blast did the harm from the following 6 on 5. And the Greek master-shooter deepened Recco’s trouble as he was on target for the 4th time in the evening and made it 9-6 with 4:11 to go. Nerves seemed to rake over at the Italian side as they lost the ball in a 6 on 5 in an unprofessional way – the next one was in, though Pavic almost stopped Echenique’s shot but the ball just crossed the line with 2:39 remaining on the clock. The Greeks wished nothing else just killing the time in attack, in the back Pavic took care of the rest. He finished the game with 15 saves on 22 shots, keeping his percentage over 70% for the three days – no one argued that he was named the Most Valuable Player of the Final Eight.

Bronze medal match
Atletic Barceloneta (ESP) v Jug Croatia Osiguranje Dubrovnik (CRO) 14-8
The game was virtually decided in the first period: Jug, exhausted from the previous two day’s physical battles against title-holder Szolnok and record-holder Recco, couldn’t take on the speed of the Barceloneta players. The Spaniards rushed to a 4-0 lead in a span of 3:37 minutes in the opening period and still held a 6-2 lead late in the second. However, Jug found some extra gear and pulled two back before the middle break and came even closer in the third at 6-5. But it turned out that this was just a short-lived comeback as Barceloneta quickly replied from a 6 on 4 and in 49 seconds they netted an action goal for 8-5. Soon it was over: after 9-6 the Spaniards quickly scored three from as many possession, again like a whirlwind, in 96 seconds, making it 12-6. The fourth period lacked the usual tensions, the reserve goalies came in and a couple of young players could also enjoy longer playing periods.

For places 5-6
ZF-Eger (HUN) v Szolnoki Dozsa-Kozgep (HUN) 6-10
It took some time before the two Hungarian sides arrived really to this match. It was their 9th clash in the season – their head-to-head stood at 4-4 before this game – and it was a bit hard for them to find the motivation as neither of them came to Genoa to play for the 5th place (last May they clashed in the semis). Eger woke up earlier, scored the only goal of the opening period, then made it two soon in the second while their goalie Branislav Mitrovic delivered one save after the other. Szolnok needed 12:13 minutes to get on the scoreboard, managed to equalise by halftime and started rolling in the second half. Milos Cuk and Aaron Younger found the way to beat Mitrovic and they did that a couple of times, giving the title-holder a 4-6 lead before the last period. Though Eger pulled one back early in the fourth, but at 5-6 Szolnok scored two great action goals in 44 seconds and from there was no way back for the local rival.
Though a minor piece of history was worth being recorded: a great family tradition was enriched by another chapter, two years after the legendary Hungarian triple Olympic champion Peter Biros called it a day, another Biros, Barnabas, his cousin left his mark in the sport by netting his first goal in the Champions League Final Eight, though it didn’t help Eger to come closer towards the end of the match.

For places 7-8
Spandau 04 (GER) v AN Brescia (ITA) 10-14
For a while Spandau seemed to keep the match under control – at the beginning they led 4-1 and later, when the weekend’s first 4-minute expulsion was called for brutality and the Germans could play in man-up for that period of time. However, after Lucas Gielen put away the penalty after the red card, Spandau could score only one goal during the 4-minute long extraman. So Brescia trailed by three when it ended, Valerio Rizzo scored immediately for 8-6 after his team was back to full strength, then came the big turning point, when Remi Saudadier was also expelled for 4min from Spandau. And Brescia made the most of this advantage, they won this part 5-0 (Spandau had 2-0) and this was enough to clinch the win as Spandau didn’t have the reserves to bridge the gap after 8-11. The last minute turned into a kind of scoring festival, three goals were netted in 36 minutes, the most spectacular one came from Christian Presciutti, who stole the ball over the halfway line after the goalie’s bad pass and sent it back from 18m to the empty net.

Champions League Final Eight
For places 7-8: Spandau v Brescia 10-14
For places 5-6: Eger v Szolnok 10-6
Bronze medal game: Barceloneta v Jug 14-8
Champions League Final: Olympiacos v Recco 9-7

Prize Money Distribution

1. Olympiacos € 52.000
2. Pro Recco € 42.000
3. Barceloneta € 35.000
4. Jug Dubrovnik € 33.000
5. Szolnok € 30.000
6. Eger € 29.000
7. Brescia € 27.000
8. Spandau € 25.000
9. Dynamo Moscow € 21.500
10. Jadran Carine € 20.500
11. Waspo Hannover € 19.500
12. Steaua Bucharest € 18.000
13. OSC Budapest € 10.000
14. Astralpool Sabadell € 8.000
15. Partizan Belgrade € 6.000
16. AZC Alphen € 4.500

Total € 381.000

Showdown with Recco and Olympiacos

The respective group-winners in the prelims reached the final by winning fierce battles over two quality rivals. Olympiacos (GRE) prevailed against Barceloneta (ESP) in a low-scoring match while Recco (ITA) overcame Jug (CRO) in a gruelling fight. The Greeks made the title bout after 2016 while Recco returns to the final stage after three years.

Brescia (white cap) vs Szolnoki (blue cap) 10 BERTOLI Zeno, 8 YOUNGER Aaron LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 08/06/2018 Semi Final 5-8 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Brescia (white cap) vs Szolnoki (blue cap) 1 DEL LUNGO Marco LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 08/06/2018 Semi Final 5-8 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Olympiakos (white cap) vs Barceloneta (blue cap) 10 PERRONE ROCHA Felipe LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 08/06/2018 SemiFinal 5-8 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Pro Recco (white cap) vs Jug Dubrovnik (blue cap) VUJASINOVIC Vladimir Head Coach Pro Recco LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 08/06/2018 SemiFinal Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Pro Recco (white cap) vs Jug Dubrovnik (blue cap) 8 ECHENIQUE Gonzalo Oscar LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 08/06/2018 SemiFinal Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Pro Recco (white cap) vs Jug Dubrovnik (blue cap) 8 RASOVIC Viktor LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 08/06/2018 SemiFinal Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Pro Recco (white cap) vs Jug Dubrovnik (blue cap) 10 FILIPOVIC Filip LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 08/06/2018 SemiFinal Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Spandau (white cap) vs Eger (blue cap) 1 BAKSA Laszlo, 11 BEDO Krisztian LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 08/06/2018 Semi Final 5-8 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Spandau (white cap) vs Eger (blue cap) Referee LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 08/06/2018 Semi Final 5-8 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Olympiakos (white cap) vs Barceloneta (blue cap) Olympiakos supporters LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 08/06/2018 SemiFinal 5-8 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Olympiakos (white cap) vs Barceloneta (blue cap) 1 LOPEZ PINEDO Daniel LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 08/06/2018 SemiFinal 5-8 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Olympiakos (white cap) vs Barceloneta (blue cap) 8 BUSLJE Andro LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 08/06/2018 SemiFinal 5-8 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Olympiakos (white cap) vs Barceloneta (blue cap) 10 PERRONE ROCHA Felipe, 2 MYLONAKIS Emmanouil LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 08/06/2018 SemiFinal 5-8 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Pro Recco (white cap) vs Jug Dubrovnik (blue cap) KOBESCAK Vjekoslav Head Coach Jug Dubrovnik LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 08/06/2018 SemiFinal Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Pro Recco (white cap) vs Jug Dubrovnik (blue cap) Team Pro Recco LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 08/06/2018 SemiFinal Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Olympiacos scored only six goals per game so far here in Genoa but that was enough to reach the final. After struggling against Spandau in the quarters (6-5) they managed to take the upper hand against Barceloneta too. It was a highly tactical game where well-organised defences worked really well.

While the Greeks seemed to have more control, Barceloneta still created some chances and made the most of them whenever they could – however, misses in the most crucial moments prevented them from saving the game at least to a shootout. The Croatian guards of Olympiacos did a great job, Josip Pavic in the goal as well as Andro Buslje and Paolo Obradovic, both netted brilliant action goals in the second half which made the difference.

The Greeks are to clash with Pro Recco for the title as the hosts could finally get rid of their demons and beat Jug after two lost semi-final matches in the previous two editions. The Croats, fielding a team with less depth as in the previous years, still imposed some threats to the hosts who were not able to build a safe distance at any time in the match.

Jug not only came back from time to time but, after being 4-2 down, managed to take the lead early in the third period at 4-5. However, Recco produced a better spell towards the end of this quarter and went 6-5 up before the last break. The hosts expanded the gap to two three times, Jug had the answers on the first two occasions (it was 8-7 with 3:42 to go) but Filip Filipovic’s third goal for 9-7 remained without an immediate response. When it came, with 0:27 on the clock, it was too late.

For the lower places the two Hungarian powerhouses restored some pride and beat their respective opponents with convincing performances. Eger downed Spandau (GER) and Szolnok overcame Brescia (ITA) to set up an in-house clash on the closing day for the 5th place – though a year ago their match in the semi-final was a different story.

Match descriptions

Semi-finals

Olympiacos Piraeus (GRE) v Athletic Barceloneta (ESP) 6-4
The teams sat on the rollercoaster in the first half, both sides had some fine and less promising spells, perhaps Olympiacos missed the bigger chance to do some damage right in the second period. After a series of missed man-ups a quick exchange of goals settled the first period for 1-1. The Greeks took the upper hand in the second, Konstantinos Genidounias scored in a dying men-up, then the defence killed a Spanish man-up and Alexandros Gounas netted another from a counter for 3-1. Olympiacos was rolling in this phase, had a 6 on 5 to build a three-goal cushion but, after a time-out, Genidounias could hit only the post. And soon they let another extra go and the Spaniards come back to the match. Alvaro Granados netted an action goal then Felipe Perrone buried a fine shot after the first attempt was saved by the goalie in a man-up for 3-3.

The trend went on in the third, the action-packed middle part first saw a disallowed penalty goal from Genidounias (he failed to make an uninterrupted shooting move) – a goal from the next attack would have given a psychological advantage to Barceloneta but they couldn’t make their 6 on 5. Dani Lopez made a save in a Greek extra, then a technical mistake cost another man-up for Barceloneta. In such a battle an action goal might mean a lot and Andro Buslje delivered one for Olympiacos after a great counter, however, Barceloneta managed to reply immediately, this time they could put away their man-up, thanks to Josip Vrlic who scored from close range for 4-4.

The Spaniards blew another chance in the fourth while Ioannis Fountoulis managed to find the way to the back of the net between the hands of Lopez and the post from a man-up – the Greek scoring machine was brave enough after four missed shots to take a fifth one which seemed to be a crucial goal. The Spaniards tried to play the same scheme at the other end as they had done before their fourth goal but this time Pavic stopped the shot. Olympiacos had another man-up to go 6-4 but Lopez made a fantastic save. With 58sec to go Barceloneta got a very last chance but Alvaro Granados’s shot was brilliantly blocked and Paolo Obradovic beat the young Spaniard at the other end while he finished off the match with a great back-handed goal.

Pro Recco (ITA) v Jug Croatia Osiguranje Dubrovnik (CRO) 9-8
Though Jug beat Recco twice in the semis in the previous two editions, those teams were stronger than the current one – all credits go to the Croats that they were able to reach this stage once more. It was inevitable that they only have a chance to catch the super-favourite if they could stay close as long as possible. Recco, surviging the scares against Brescia, started the game in commanding style, with a great action goal from the first possession and a killed man-down. Though Vincenzo Renzuto netted a fine goal from a counter to make it 1-1, Recco started to dominate soon, the usual blast from Filip Filipovic and a nice one-timer from Michael Bodegas from a man-up gave the hosts a 3-1 lead. Jug wasn’t able to put away its man-ups for a while and the post twice saved the Italians too. Still, Viktor Rasovic netted one after collecting a rebound, with just 1.6sec on the clock at the end of the first which showed that the Croats would not give this match free for Recco.

Tensions began to run higher in the second, Francesco di Fulvio netted a 5m shot for 4-2 early in the period but Recco couldn’t add any more in the remaining 6:21 minutes in this quarter. Jug’s attack wasn’t too effective either, they missed a 6 on 4, but their defence also worked well while killing back-to-back extras. Though Tempesti delivered a couple of fine saves, he couldn’t take a hand on Hrvoje Benic’s fine shot in a 6 on 5. Marko Bijac also did a great job in the other goal so it stood 4-3 at half-time.

Soon it was equal, Xavi Garcie earned some advantage on the right wing and sent the ball home from the counter. Soon they were ahead at 4-5 as Loren Fatovic put away a 6 on 5 and the scenario started to remind many of the previous years… A double red card for Niccolo Gitto and Luka Loncar demonstrated the heat of the battle (it was a bigger loss for the Croats as the centre-forward was expelled for the remaining of the game) – where Recco soon gained ground again. Gonzalo Echenique sent the ball home from a nicely set-up extra, then the Recco defence killed a man-down and di Fulvio finished the ensuing counter to make it 6-5 (scored this double in 57 seconds). The Croats were back to struggling, wasted another 6 on 5, Tempesti could make a save as the shooting opportunity wasn’t properly set up – so Recco held its single-goal lead before the final eight minutes.

A crucial action goal opened the last period, Guillermo Molina found enough space to score from a counter for 7-5 but after two missed man-ups in the previous period, Jug found the key and Maro Jokovic netted a fine shot for 7-6. Jokovic had another chance soon, had two shots in the next 6 on 5, the first one was saved, the second was blocked and Recco hit back with a brilliant combination from Echenique and Filipovic. Fatovic learnt the lesson as he opted for a direct shot from 5m right after earning an extra and the kept Jug close. Bijac had a great catch in Recco’s next 6 on 5 but he couldn’t save the day with 2:27 to go when Filipovic buried a penalty for 9-7. That was the point when the Croats were broken finally – though they killed a man-down but gave away two balls by long but less precise passes. Credits to Jug that they still did what they could, with 27 seconds to go they pulled one back but couldn’t take the ball back and Recco could finally celebrate of making the final for the first time since 2015.

For places 5-8

Spandau 04 (HUN) v ZF-Eger (HUN) 6-10
Though Eger opened the scoring, soon Spandau had a fine spell and rushed to a 3-1 lead late in the first period. Few would have guessed that the next German goal would arrive in the fourth period. It happened so, Eger shut out its rival for 20:52 minutes, though the Hungarians weren’t too fresh either as they couldn’t deliver a decisive blow though scoring four goals gave them a 5-3 lead after three periods. Still, Spandau pulled one back early in the fourth but a fine man-up reset the two-goal gap in the next possession and Strahinja Rasovic’s 5m shot expanded it to three. The Germans fought on, as they usually do, at 5-7 they had an extra but missed it and that was their last chance to stay in the match, it turned out soon. Eger netted two in 38 seconds and that decided the outcome. Eger’s Olympic champion Serbian goalie Branislav Mitrovic enjoyed a great day, had 10 stops on 16 shots for 62.4% – contributing a lot to Eger’s win.

AN Brescia (ITA) v Szolnoki Dozsa-Kozgep (HUN) 7-8
The losers of perhaps the two most exhausting matches had to play on the next day in a consolation match – finding the motivation, let alone enough reserves was a tremendous challenge for both. After a balanced opening period which saw one goal apiece Szolnok took control by netting two in 1:47 minutes for a 1-3 lead. From that on the title-holder dominated but not overwhelmingly. Deep into the third they went 2-5 up while bad misses showed how hard was to play just a day after such matches as Szolnok’s clash with Jug and Brescia’s big battle against Recco, lost by penalties. After going three goals up, Szolnok seemed to have slowed down a bit too much while Brescia managed to score two fine action goals, especially Valerio Rizzo’s curled lob was outstanding and the Italians trailed only by one before the final period.

Szolnok’s young leftie Gergo Zalanki doubled their lead once more, Rizzo put away a penalty for 5-6 but Bence Batori’s fine shot from a 6 on 5 gave back the two-goal lead for the Magyars with 4:02 to go. Szolnok could have closed the match soon but missed a man-up for +3 and Nicholas Presciutti netted a brilliant goal from the distance for 6-7. Brescia had possessions to go even but couldn’t score from action this time while Aaron Younger’s 5m shot made its way to the net with 34 seconds from time. Though Brescia pulled one back once more 17 seconds later but the Hungarians kept the ball for the remaining moments.

Champions League Final Eight

Quarterfinals
Olympiacos Piraeus (GRE) v Spandau 04 Berlin (GER) 6-5
ZF Eger (HUN) v CN Barceloneta (ESP) 4-9
Jug Croatia Osiguranje Dubrovnik (CRO) v Szolnoki Dozsa-Kozgep (HUN) 9-8
Pro Recco (ITA) v AN Brescia (ITA) 8-8, pen: 4-2

Friday 8 June
For places 5-8
16.00 Spandau v Eger 6-10
17.30 Brescia v Szolnok 7-8
Semi-finals
19.00 Olympiacos v Barceloneta 6-4
20.30 Recco v Jug 9-8

Saturday 9 June
16.00 For places 7-8: Spandau v Brescia
17.30 For places 5-6: Eger v Szolnok
19.00 Bronze medal game: Barceloneta v Jug
20.30 Champions League Final: Olympiacos v Recco

Press release from LEN, photos courtesy of Deepbluemedia/Giorgio Scala

Brescia almost spoiled Recco’s party

Olympiacos (GRE) meets Barceloneta (ESP) while Recco (ITA) faces Jug (ITA) in the semi-finals. For the first time since 2014 the title-holder couldn’t make the semis as Szolnok was downed by Jug in a thrilling game, while Brescia almost spoiled Recco’s home party as the forced a penalty shootout but the host club prevailed at the end.

Eger (white cap) vs Barcelloneta (blue cap) 9 CUCKOVIC Uros LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 07/06/2018 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Olympiacos (white cap) vs Spandau (blue cap) PAVIC Josip LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Olympiacos (white cap) vs Spandau (blue cap) RESTOVIC Marin LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Olympiacos (white cap) vs Spandau (blue cap) GENIDOUNIAS Konstantinos, KUEPPERS Lukas LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Olympiacos (white cap) vs Spandau (blue cap) 7 DERVISIS Georgios, 2 SAUDADIER Remi LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Eger (white cap) vs Barcelloneta (blue cap) 3 GRANADOS ORTEGA Alvaro LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 07/06/2018 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Eger (white cap) vs Barcelloneta (blue cap) 5 VRLIC Josip LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 07/06/2018 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Jug Dubrovnik (white cap) vs Szolnoki (blue cap) Team Jug Dubrovnik LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 07/06/2018 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Jug Dubrovnik (white cap) vs Szolnoki (blue cap) 4 ZALANKI Gergo LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 07/06/2018 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Jug Dubrovnik (white cap) vs Szolnoki (blue cap) Vjekoslav Kobescak Head Coach Jug Dubrovnik LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 07/06/2018 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

Jug Dubrovnik (white cap) vs Szolnoki (blue cap) 7 ALEKSIC Milan LEN Champions League Final Eight 2018 07/06/2018 Piscina Sciorba Genova Italy Photo © G.Scala/Deepbluemedia/inside

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