What may be the best-ever edition of the Men’s Euro Cup is nearing its conclusion, with the second leg of the final to take place on Saturday
Pro Recco will host Radnicki tomorrow at 19:00 CET. The game won’t be held in Recco’s outdoor pool, but in the indoor pool in Sori.
There seems to be little doubt about who will win the trophy, as Recco convincingly defeated Radnicki in Kragujevac, 16:12, despite being three goals down in the second quarter (3:6). Many believe that the outcome of the final was decided in the first leg, and they may be correct. Radnicki faces a ‘mission impossible,’ but the Serbs certainly aren’t arriving in Italy waving a white flag.
Pro Recco rarely loses at home. In European matches, the 11-time Champions League winner has only suffered five home-ground defeats in the last 20 years. The most recent loss happened in 2023, when Barceloneta defeated Recco 9:8 during the Champions League Group Stage. The biggest home loss for Recco in the Champions League over the last two decades was against OSC Budapest, in the canceled 2019/20 season (5:8). Radnicki is among the few clubs that have secured an away victory at Recco, accomplishing this feat in the CHL qualifications in 2013 (12:10). Besides the three teams, only Primorje and Brescia earned European away wins against Recco in the past two decades.
Recco has several advantages going into the match: a home field, a four-goal lead before the first whistle, and a strong tradition. Besides, the hosts have had more time to recover from their domestic final.
Both teams have just won their respective national championships this week. Recco finished its season on Tuesday with a 9:5 victory over Brescia, playing without the match’s hero in Kragujevac, Francesco Di Fulvio. But he will rejoin the team for the second leg of the Euro Cup final. On the other hand, Radnicki secured the title in Serbia after an exhausting three-match series against Novi Beograd, culminating in a thrilling 14:13 victory on Wednesday. The newly-crowned Serbian champions had little time to rest and recover from that match before their trip to Italy.
These details suggest that Recco is close to winning their first-ever Euro Cup, the only missing trophy.
However, Radnicki also has the right to hope and doesn’t want to surrender easily.
Both teams feature exceptional water polo players who have competed in many high-stakes finals and have won numerous trophies with their clubs and national teams.
Pro Recco boasts superstars like Di Fulvio, Cannella, Echenique, Younger, Hallock, Del Lungo, etc (the latter three will leave the club after tomorrow’s match). Radnicki also has great water polo aces, including five current Olympic champions, veteran Dusko Pijetlovic, and several players who may not be in the spotlight but have proven they can be game-changers, like Valiko Dadvani.
It won’t be a huge surprise if Radnicki wins in Sori. However, the visitors will need to give their best performance. The question remains: Will it be enough to overcome a four-goal deficit?
