Italy and Hungary will play in the final of the Men’s European U16 Championships in Istanbul.
Both semifinal games were thrillers. Italy secured a spot in the final with a narrow 13:12 win over Montenegro. Hungary beat Croatia after a penalty shootout.
Italy arrived at the final with five wins in as many games, while Hungary started the tournament with two losses and, after that, recorded four straight victories.
2025 Elite Men’s European U16 Championships, Istanbul, Day 6
Italy beat Montenegro 13:12 in the first semifinal. Montenegro took an early 2:1 lead, but Italy quickly turned the score with two goals. At the beginning of the second period, Italy built a 2-goal advantage (7:5). The Montenegrins chased the rivals and caught up with them in the third period (9:9 and 10:10). Still, Italy re-established a 2-goal lead before the final quarter (12:10). Montenegro equalized once again with two goals within 47 seconds in the middle of the fourth period (12:12). Chianese put Italy in front scoring with an extra player in the 30th minute. It was his fourth goal in the match. His team managed to keep a slim lead in the last 02:40 minutes and will battle for the gold medal. Chianese was the top scorer in the winning team, while Montenegro’s Roganovic hit the back of the net five times.
Hungary got off to a good start in the second semifinal against Croatia. At the first break, the Hungarians led 5:2. In the third minute of the second quarter, they stretched the margin to four (7:3). Croatia managed to cut the deficit before halftime, bringing the score to 7:9. Led by Damir Burazin, who scored six goals in the match, Croatia reversed the game’s momentum during the third period and entered the final quarter with a 10:9 lead. Ferric doubled the Croat’s advantage to 11:9. However, Hungary’s Gogh and Stogicza scored the last two goals in regular time – 11:11, and a penalty shootout decided a winner after a penalty shootout. The Hungarians made no mistake in a penalty thriller and secured a spot in the final with a 16:14 victory.
Semifinals
Italy – Montenegro 13:12 (6:5, 3:3, 3:2, 1:2)
Hungary – Croatia 16:14 (5:2, 4:5, 0:3, 2:1, PSO 5:3)
Classification matches
5th – 8th place semifinals
Turkiye – Spain 11:17 (3:5, 3:5, 3:4, 2:3)
Greece – Serbia 19:18 (4:3, 1:4, 2:2, 7:5, PSO 5:4)
9th-place match: Netherlands – Germany 9:17 (2:6, 2:3, 1:5, 4:3)
11th-place match: Romania – Georgia 10:7 (1:2, 3:2, 3:1, 3:2)
Group 13th – 15th place, Round 2: Moldova – Poland 13:10 (4:2, 2:3, 4:2, 3:3). Malta bye. Standings: 1. Moldova 3 (1), 2. Poland 3 (2), 3. Malta 0 (1).
2025 Division 1 Men’s European U16 Championships, Ljubljana, Day 6
Bulgaria and France advanced to the final of Division 1 in Ljubljana, thus qualifying for the Elite Division at the next edition of the European U16 Championships
Semifinals
Bulgaria – Bosnia and Herzegovina 11:8 (3:0, 3:1, 2:2, 3:5)
Ukraine – France 9:16 (3:4, 1:3, 3:4, 2:5)
Classification matches
5th – 8th place semifinals: Slovenia – Lithuania 12:11, Switzerland – Cyprus 9:7
9th – 12th place semifinals: Slovakia – Latvia 25:2, Czechia – Portugal 11:12
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