Novi Beograd will compete in the Champions League final for the third time in four years.
In the first semifinal of the Final Four in Malta, the Serbian team defeated Barceloneta in a thrilling penalty shootout, winning 15:14 after the match ended in a 10:10 tie in regular time.
The match was closely contested, featuring several turns. Novi Beograd was very close to a victory in regular time, but Barceloneta managed to equalize at 10:10 with just a second left on the clock.
The decisive moment came during the fifth round of penalty shots when Novi Beograd’s goalkeeper Milan Glusac saved a crucial shot from Biel.
This semifinal was the second time that Novi Beograd and Barceloneta faced off in a penalty shootout, with Novi Beograd winning their previous encounter in the same way at the Final Eight in Belgrade two years ago.
Novi Beograd continued their trend of tightly contested matches, as this was their fourth penalty shootout in the Champions League final tournaments. They have, however, lost two of the previous three shootouts—once to Recco in the 2022 final and again to Ferencvaros in the 2024 semifinals.
2024/25 Champions League, Semifinal 1
Novi Beograd – Barceloneta 15:14 (3:3, 2:1, 1:3, 4:3, PSO 5:4)
Novi Beograd: Skoumpakis 2, Martinovic 2, Cuk 2, Gbadamassi 1, Gladovic 1, Dimitrijevic 1 Perkovic 1.
Barceloneta: Granados 5, Burian 2, Munarriz 1, Sanahuja 1, Vigvari 1,
Penalty shootout: Perrone 0:1, Martinovic 1:1, Granados 1:2, Lukic 2:2, Vigvari 2:3, Dimitrijevic 3:3, Sanahuja 3:4, Vlachopoulos 4:4, Biel – Glusac saved, Cuk 5:4
Novi Beograd earned a 2:0 lead, with goals from the Serbian team’s youngest players, Martinovic (a man-up) and Gladovic (counterattack), in the first two minutes. Novi Beograd defended very well. Barceloneta got on the scoreboard only in the 6th minute, when Sanahuja converted a man-up. Just 30 seconds later, Granados leveled at 2:2 from a penalty. In the rest of the quarter, the teams exchanged the goals, ending the first period tied at 3:3.
Both teams strengthened their defenses after the first break, and both goalkeepers—Novi Beograd’s Glusac and Barceloneta’s Aguirre—performed very well. In the 10th minute, Vince Vigvari scored to put Barceloneta in front from a counterattack. However, that would be Barceloneta’s only goal of the first half. Midway through the quarter, Cuk equalized with a man-up, and Skoumpakis gave Novi Beograd a 5-4 lead with a long-distance shot in the 14th minute. The Serbs managed to maintain that advantage until halftime. Additionally, they had the last possession of the period along with a man-up opportunity, but Aguirre made two crucial saves in the closing seconds.
Novi Beograd doubled its lead with a power-play goal by Milos Cuk in its first possession in the second half. At that moment, Novi Beograd’s conversion of the extra-player shots was four out of five. But that was followed by Barceloneta’s 3:0 run. Immediately, Granados responded from a 6-on-5. Barceloneta improved its man-up conversion. Sanahuja added another power-play goal to level at 6:6. Novi Beograd’s percentage of power-play shots started decreasing. After one wasted man-up by Novi Beograd, Burian scored from a counter-attack to give Barceloneta a 7:6 lead.
Martinovic ended Novi Beograd’s 8-minute goalless phase and leveled with a nice lob at 7:7 (26th minute). Still, in the following possession, Granados added a new extra-player goal. Marko Dimitrijevic leveled three minutes from the end. In the next attack, Barceloneta had a chance with a man-up. Glusac posted a save, but after that, he sank the ball, and the Spaniards earned a penalty shot, which Granados converted to a 9:8 lead. Barceloneta wasn’t in front for long. Perkovic equalized. Just 43 seconds from the end, Dimitrios Skoumpakis made it 10:9 with a long-distance lob.
After that, Barceloneta started a 7 on 6 attack as Aguirre joined his teammates in front of Novi Beograd’s goal. The Serbs defended with 22 seconds remaining. The Serbs’ coach, Zivko Gocic, called a time-out. It seemed that everything was over. However, a few seconds before the end of the game, the referees called an ordinary foul committed by Cuk on Granados, allowing Barceloneta to regain possession of the ball. Burian scored, leveling the game at 10:10 with just one second remaining on the clock.
In the first four rounds of penalty shots, there were no misses. However, in the fifth series, Milan Glusac made a save, blocking a shot from Biel, marking his 11th save of the match. At the other end of the pool, Novi Beograd’s captain, Milos Cuk, converted his shot successfully, securing Novi Beograd’s place in the final.
Follow the live scores and the statistics of the Champions League Final Four on Total Waterpolo Arena
More articles about the Champions League
