Belgrade 2026: European Water Polo Championships Day 4 match previews – Belgrade

Men’s European Water Polo Championships, Belgrade 2026

Match previews, Day 4 – Tuesday 13 January (native instances proven)

Group B

12:45 Georgia v Croatia

• Georgia couldn’t do a lot to cease Greece within the first spherical of video games and so they face one other tough problem after they conflict with Croatia, who additionally loved some simple cruising in opposition to Slovakia. In this group, Day 3 can be essential for all the perimeters, as the highest spot and third place can be at stake.

• Croatia maintain a 6-0 lead of their head-to-head file with Georgia. While the matches had been largely lopsided, their final one a yr in the past in Otopeni, on the Division One match within the World Cup supplied surprising pleasure earlier than the favourites prevailed 13-11.

• Earlier, there have been by no means any doubts: 13-6 (2013, Euro Qualifiers), 17-3 (2016, preps), 15-6 (2021, Olympics), 13-7 (2022, Worlds), 15-5 (2022, Europeans).

• Fun truth: Players from the previous Yugoslavia are properly represented within the Georgian nationwide workforce. They have a Serbian legion of Dusan Vasic, Jovan Saric and Veljko Tankosic, a Montenegrin, Stefan Pjesivac – and now in addition they have a Croatian on their roster, Andrija Vlahovic. For positive, nearly half of the workforce will just about perceive what the Croatian gamers attempt to talk amongst themselves.

Group B

15:15 Slovenia v Greece

• Another lopsided contest is on the horizon as Slovenia, blown away by the Croats two days in the past, tackle the World Championship bronze medallists, Greece.

• This goes to be the first-ever conflict between the 2 sides.

• Fun truth: Well, it’s much less enjoyable for Slovenia, but it surely’s nonetheless true that they might solely win one match out of 15 throughout the final three editions – a crossover sport in opposition to Malta two years in the past, which eliminated them from the underside rank that they had been dropped to, each in 2006 and in 2022.

Group D

18:00 Slovakia v Italy

• Italy have been favoured by the draw as they’re the one aspect among the many Big Seven that doesn’t should face one other medal favorite within the group stage, solely underdogs. After beating Türkiye with ease on Sunday, one other – on paper at the least – simple take a look at is coming for the Settebello.

• Apart from a surprisingly shut World League qualifier again in 2014, Italy have by no means had any complications whereas dealing with the Slovaks. In that difficult 2014 match, they prevailed 14-13, however their two most up-to-date encounters resulted in routs – one other World League qualifier noticed a 22-3 defeat, whereas on the 2022 Europeans, Italy received 21-9.

• Fun truth: Italy’s head coach Alessandro Campagna’s first main match in his function was a European Championships, 25 years in the past in Budapest, the place he led the Settebello to a silver medal straight away. The legendary coach had a seven-year spell on the helm of the Greek nationwide workforce earlier than he was reappointed to guide Italy as soon as once more. In the present discipline, no different coach has such large expertise as Campagna – for him, that is the thirteenth straight version of the Europeans within the function of a head coach.

Group D

20:30 Romania v Türkiye

• Romania got here up with a convincing efficiency in opposition to Slovakia on Sunday and one other win would safe them at the least three poins within the subsequent spherical.

• History is on Romania’s aspect, as they’re 7-0 up in head-to-head up to now 15 years. After a collection of World League qualification matches, they lastly met on the Europeans too, in 2020, however the consequence was the identical as within the earlier video games, Romania thrashed the Turks 20-3.

• Fun truth: Again, much less enjoyable for the Turks, as they’ve the worst cumulative goal-difference within the all-time ranks of the Europeans – at present it’s –477 (258 targets scored, 704 conceded).

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Gergely Csurka for European Aquatics