The fourth day of the European Championship brought the first exciting match in Groups B and D, but there were no surprises.
In the last game of the second round of Group D, Romania faced strong resistance from Turkiye. However, after a thrilling game filled with goals, Romania managed to secure a 20:19 victory. Italy, on the other hand, did not shine in its match against Slovakia in the same group, but the victory for “Setebello”—was never in doubt, as they won 17:12.
The favorites performed as expected in the matches of Group B. Croatia defeated Georgia 18:7, while Greece triumphed easily over Slovenia, 23:8.
Croatia, Greece, Italy, and Romania have all mathematically qualified for Group Phase II. On Thursday, the remaining two participants for Group F will be determined in the matches between Slovakia and Turkiye, as well as Georgia and Slovenia.
Based on what the teams showed today, the encounter Slovakia – Turkiye could be very exciting.
2026 European Men’s Championships, Belgrade, Day 4
GROUP B
(quarters 2:3, 0:4, 2:5, 3:6)
Georgia: Shushiashvili 2, Bitadze 2, Pjesivac 1, Vlahovic 1, Razmadze 1.
Croatia: Kharkov 4, Bukic 3, Fatovic 2, Loncar 2, Lazic 2, Vrlic 2, Butic 1, Zuvela 1, Biljaka 1
Georgia did not enter the matches against Greece and Croatia as a contender for points, but there were higher expectations for the Georgian team in these challenging games, given that they have several experienced players.
Nika Shishiashvili (Georgia) and Konstantin Kharkov (Croatia) Photo by Krsto Vulovic
Today, the Georgian team didn’t fall so quickly as in the match against Greece, where they trailed 0:8 in the 12th minute. However, Croatia was able to break its resistance fairly easily. Georgia managed to score an opening goal and later equalized at 2:2. Despite this, between the 4th and 18th minutes, Georgia did not score, while Croatia netted six times, extending their lead to 8:2. The Croatians continued to increase their advantage throughout the match.
In the final minute, Croatian head coach Ivica Tucak wanted to test some tactical strategies by setting up a 7-on-6 attack, playing without a goalkeeper. Croatia missed their first opportunity from this setup, which allowed Georgian goalkeeper Razmadze to score by shooting into the empty net, bringing the score to 7:17. However, in the final second, Bukic scored from the 7-on-6 setup.
(quarters 2:7, 1:5, 2:7, 3:4)
Slovenia: Troppan 2, Potocnik 2, Stefanovic 1, Kadivec 1, Canc 1, Stromajer 1.
Greece: Argyropoulos 4, Nikoalidis 4, Genidonuias 3, Papanastasiou 3, Gkillas 3, Kakaris 2, Skoumpakis 1, Gkiouvetsis 1, Kalogeropoulos 1, Chalyvopoulos 1,
Slovenia fought hard, but the difference between the Slovenian and the Greek teams is significant, so Greece ruled the field. Anyway, Slovenia didn’t give up until the end.
Dimitrios Skoumpakis (Greece) Photo by Krsto Vulovic
The Slovenians took the lead twice in the opening three minutes, 1:0 and 2:1. But, at the first break, Greece led 7:2.
Already at the beginning of the second half, ten goals separated the rivals . Argyropoulos scored for 13:3 from a distance, and shortly after, Kakaris added a goal from close range to make it 14:3. The Greeks slowed in the final eight minutes.
GROUP D
( quarters 4:5, 7:5, 7:5, 2:4)
Romania: Georgescu 5, Neamtu 4, Fulea 3, Iudean 2, Lutescu 2, Prioteasa 1, Gheorghe 1, Belenyesi 1, Luncan 1.
Turkiye: Caner 6, Duzenli 5, Oguzcan 2, Acar 2, Gemalmazoglu 1, Alpman 1, Naipoglu 2.
Romania, the team that participated in the 2024 Olympic Games and the previous two editions of the World Championships, was considered a strong favorite in the match against Turkiye, especially after a convincing win over Slovakia.
However, Turkiye, which returned to the European Championships after failing to qualify for the 2022 and 2024 editions, proved it can be a formidable opponent.
Romania scored the first goal, but then Turkiye took control. In the 7th minute, the Turks had a 2-goal lead for the first time (5:3). They opened the second quarter excellently, with three goals in less than three minutes (Duzenli one and Caner two), jumping to a huge 8:4 lead. Romania’s head coach, Bogdan Rath, had to call a timeout. However, it didn’t halt the Turks’ momentum immediately. The Romanians forced a man-up after a timeout, which Neamtu converted to 5:8. But, Alman replied with a 6 on 5 goal and the Turks regained a 4-goal difference (9:5). Still, Romania pulled a comeback and managed to level at 10:10 with 59 seconds left in the first half. Neamtu gave the Romanians an 11:10 lead 15 seconds before the middle break.
Photo by Krsto Vulović.
Caner leveled at 11:11 in the 26th minute. Romania responded with two goals, going to 13:11. However, the match was far from decided.The Romanians didn’t have full control of the game, marked with 33 exclusions and penalty fouls (18 committed by the Romanians and 15 by the Turks). Romania built a 3-goal lead (16:13) after Fulea scored with an extra player in the 22nd minute. They had a 17:14 advantage shortly after and 18:15 at the last break
But the Turks hadn’t said their last word yet. They chased Romania. In the middle of the final period, they cut the deficit to one goal (18:19) and the tension was going higher and higher. A minute and a half from the end, Luncan scored from a counterattack for 20:18. In the next possession, Turkey didn’t convert its man-up, and Romania was very close to the victory. Gemalmazoglu scored the 19th goal for turkiye when it was too late – 21 seconds before the end. In the remaining time, Romania kept the ball and three points.
Romania had a very good conversion of man-up shots (8/11), but Turkey also scored a lot of goals from 6 on 5 – seven (from 14 attempts). Romania netted two and Turkiye four goals from the penalty line.
(quarters 2:5, 3:3, 4:5, 3:4)
Slovakia: Balaz 3, Durik 2, Maros Tkac 2, Mihal 1, Tisaj 1, Furman 1, Bielik 1, Caraj 1.
Italy: Di Somma 4, Fererro 3, Bruni 3, Condemi 3, Dolce 2, Alesiani 1, Del Basso 1.
After a poor performance against Romania, Slovakia did its best in the 2nd round and made the most of the Italians’ mistake. However, the “Settebello” controlled the match despite they had ups and downs.
Italy started excellently and in the first four minutes gained a 4:0 lead and defended two man-downs. Still, the favorites didn’t keep the same rhythm throughout the game. They led 5:2 at the first break and maintained that advantage, but Slovakia was able to cut the deficit. In the 14th minute, Balazs converted a penalty to make it 5:6. Italy missed a lot of cnances in the second quarter, including two from counterattacks. In the 16th minute, the Italians regained a 3-goal lead with two quick goals (Bruni and Alesiani).
Edoardo Di Somma Photo by Krsto Vulović.
But, Italy didn’t keep its momentum. Early in the third quarter, Slovakia converted another man-up for 6:8. Italy built a 5-goal lead deep into the third period, 13:8 (Di Somma from a 6 on 5), but Tisaj replied immediately. In the fourth quarter, the teams traded goals. Condemi sealed Italy’s victory, scoring for 17:12 in the 31st minute.
Slovakia shouldn’t be disappointed with its performance, but Italy, which played without Matteo Iocchi Gratta, has to improve its defensive play, but this match was an opportunity for “Settebello” to improve their man-down, because 23 personal fouls were commited by them.
DAY 5
Day 5, January 14 – Group A: Malta – Hungary (12:45), France – Montenegro (18:00, Group C: etherlands – Spain (15:15), Israel – Serbia (20:13)
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