Big wins for Olympiacos, NBG, Recco and Oradea on day two of Champions League

The men’s Champions League roared back into action on Tuesday night, and the first four games of day two didn’t disappoint. VK Novi Beograd stole the headlines with a commanding 10-7 away win over VK Jadran Split, Olympiacos outclassed Vasas in Budapest, and Oradea earned their first points against Primorac Kotor. Meanwhile, at home in Italy, Recco were in ruthless form – dismantling Jadran Herceg Novi with ease and sending the visitors back to Montenegro empty-handed.

Champions League Men
Group Stage, Day Two
Tuesday 28 October

Group A

Vasas Plaket (HUN) 5-15 Olympiacos SFP (GRE)

Group B

VK Jadran Split (CRO) 7-10 VK Novi Beograd (SRB)
Pro Recco (ITA) 16-7 Jadran m:tel Herceg Novi (MNE)

Group C

CSM Oradea (ROU) 14-7 VPK Primorac Kotor (MNE)

Group A

Vasas Plaket (HUN) 5-15 Olympiacos SFP (GRE)

Olympiacos showed no mercy in Budapest, needing only two quarters to build a decisive lead. Vasas would have required a near-perfect performance to stay competitive, but an early penalty miss and missed man-ups signalled they would face an uphill battle.

Their six-on-five conversions had kept them afloat in Kragujevac on the opening day against Radnicki, yet this time they converted only their third extra-man chance, which was just enough to momentarily halt Olympiacos’ surge.

After 1-1, the Greeks drilled in four quick goals – Gergo Zalanki scored from a man-up, Dimitrios Dimou fired in two from distance within 45 seconds, and captain Konstantinos Genidounias buried a penalty to make it 1-5. Soma Lakatos then converted Vasas’ lone man-up of the period.

The Magyars tightened their defence after the break, killing two man-downs, but they still couldn’t close the gap. Midway through the second, Dimitrios Nikolaidis struck from the centre, followed by two more missed man-ups for Vasas.

Zalanki then converted a penalty, and Ioannis Fountoulis added a goal from action 44 seconds later, setting the half-time score at 2-8.

The same pattern continued after the restart. Vasas struggled to breach the Greek’s disciplined defence, but after enduring a 10-minute scoreless stretch, they finally netted three in the third. But Olympiacos stayed relentless, outscoring the hosts in a lively quarter to lead 5-13.

With little left to play for in the fourth, Vasas couldn’t find another goal, while Olympiacos eased into power-saving mode. However, they still added two more strikes to seal a dominant 5-15 away victory.

Group B

VK Jadran Split (CRO) 7-10 VK Novi Beograd (SRB)

It was a special Jadran edition of the play Much A Do About Nothing – the Croats fired 41 shots to Novi Beograd’s 25, yet still lost as the Serbs’ defence proved far more composed.

Milan Glusac was tremendous in goal once again, posting 13 saves, and with strong defensive help, only 20 of Jadran’s 41 attempts even reached the target.

Jadran opened well, establishing a 2-0 lead and killing three man-downs before NBG finally broke the ice with a penalty after five minutes.

Mislav Curkovic hit back immediately for 3-1, but Vasilje Martinovic converted a man-up, and seven seconds before the buzzer, Luka Gladovic buried another penalty to level it at 3-3.

Two missed man-ups hurt the Croats early in the second, as it was the Serbs who ended up socring first. Milos Cuk fired in from action, then just 36 seconds later Filip Jankovic doubled NBG’s lead – with that goal forming part of an impressive 0-4 Serbian run.

Jadran were struggling to find a way through the Serbian defence, but they finally ended their almost 10-minute drought with 36 seconds left in the half. Each side added one more before the break, leaving it 5-6.

Jadran’s defence shone early in the third, denying NBG in three straight six-on-fives, but they failed to capitalise.

Midway through the period, Gladovic struck again from close range. Marcus Berehulak pulled one back on a man-up, but Goran Grgurevic soon restored NGB’s two-goal cushion with a finish from action for 6-8.

Trailing by two, Jadran pushed to close the gap, but Glusac and his defence stood firm. NBG killed three man-downs in the first four minutes, and another huge block denied Berehulak on Jadran’s fourth extra-man chance of the quarter.

Then Martinovic fired home from an almost impossible angle in a fading man-up, sealing the contest with 1:10 remaining.

After a steal, Dusan Trtovic finished off a counterattack for 6-10, and a late Jadran consolation goal meant little – or rather, nothing.

Once again, NBG sailed away with three points, while Jadran, after two defeats, now need something close to a miracle to reach the next round.

Group B

Pro Recco (ITA) 16-7 Jadran m:tel Herceg Novi (MNE)

After a year’s absence from the Champions League, Recco returned in trademark fashion – delivering another dominant home performance and handing Jadran m:tel a firm knockout blow.

Herceg Novi’s Vasilje Radovic may have opened the scoring after 28 seconds, but Recco’s response was emphatic – five straight goals and five killed man-downs – and it was only the first period.

Alvaro Granados and Luke Pavillard were on fire as the Italian giants went on adding more and built a massive 8-2 lead by half-time, while Jadran’s Daniil Merkulov missed a penalty in the last seconds.

Recco were even more devastating early in the third, as Giacomo Cannella’s rocket was backed up by a nice double from Granados – three goals in less than two minutes made the points well and truly safe at 11-2.

The Italians’ hold on the game eased slightly in the closing stages, with both teams scoring five goals each.

In total, Recco struck eight times in both halves, while Jadran managed just seven overall – a clear reflection of the gap in quality between the two sides.

Group C

CSM Oradea (ROU) 14-7 VPK Primorac Kotor (MNE)

Oradea delivered a stunning win over Primorac, as the Montenegrins never came close to challenging for the points in this one.

The Romanians set the tone early with a 3-0 burst before Nemanja Vico converted a man-up after five minutes.

Oradea responded swiftly, with Ivan Gusarov scoring from action to make it 4-1.

Gusarov’s penalty was saved at the start of the second quarter, and for the next four and a half minutes, both sides struggled to find any rhythm in attack.

Then came a brief flurry of Montenegrin goals in just 59 seconds – though one of them was scored by Oradea’s Filip Gardasevic, their top shooter – slightly narrowing the gap to 5-3.

Primorac then missed two more man-ups, a costly lapse compounded by Gusarov’s last-second strike before half-time, restoring Oradea’s three-goal cushion.

Early in the third, the hosts turned the screw. David Belenyesi converted a penalty, and Sebastian Oltean buried a six-on-five just 80 seconds in to make it 8-3.

Less than a minute later, Oltean and Gusarov struck again in quick succession, and at 10-3 the contest was effectively over.

Oradea maintained their seven-goal advantage to the finish, delighting the home crowd and bouncing back impressively from their tough defeat in Budapest against FTC on day one.

For Primorac, it was a shock collapse after their strong showing versus Brescia – a second straight loss that could already hint at an early exit.

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Gergely Csurka for European Aquatics

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