Belgrade 2026: Serbia edge epic battle with Spain, while Hungary sink Montenegro on action-packed day three

Serbia looked to be heading for defeat against Spain as they trailed 11-10 entering the final minute of their epic contest, but two late goals – including a dramatic winner from Viktor Rasovic with just six seconds remaining – saw the hosts take all three points and light up the Belgrade Arena. Earlier, Hungary produced a masterclass to dismantle Montenegro, while France proved too strong for Malta, and the Netherlands outclassed Israel.

Men’s 2026 European Water Polo Championships – Belgrade
Day 3, Monday 12 January

Group A

Malta 13-22 France
Hungary 13-10 Montenegro

Group C

Netherlands 19-11 Israel
Spain 11-12 Serbia

Group A

Malta 13-22 France
(4-6, 2-5, 3-6, 4-5)

Malta were part of another entertaining game – after their 33-goal opener against Montenegro, this time their match produced 35 goals, though they still lost heavily.

The French were clearly determined from the beginning, seemingly mindful they had narrowly escaped defeat against Malta in the qualifications (eventually winning the shootout there, albeit with a different line-up).

France were loud and expressive, with plenty of goals in attack, and several saves and blocks in defence, all triggering fist-pumping both in the pool and on the bench.

And they had more and more reasons to celebrate as the game went on, as they began to dominate from the second quarter.

The first eight minutes were a good fight. The Maltese managed to claw their way back after falling 1-4 behind early on and trailed 3-4 and 4-5, before Steven Vitrant converted a man-up to make it 4-6, 21 seconds from the end of the quarter.

In the second period, Thomas Vernoux’s powerful effort just 21 seconds in set the tone. Seventy seconds later, Romain Marion-Vernoux also scored from action to extend France’s lead.

A well-worked play earned a penalty for Malta, which Steven Camilleri fired in, but two more goals from action followed at the other end in the space of 38 seconds, making it clear there would be no way back for the underdogs as the score moved to 5-10.

A quick exchange of goals set the half-time score at 6-11, and any lingering doubt about who take all the points was removed after the break, as Les Bleus ensured there would be no surprises this time.

A 0-3 burst, including a fine double from Marion-Vernoux, effectively put the game to bed at 6-14.

From that point on, only the margin remained in question. Towards the end it reached double figures, although a strong finish from the Maltese narrowed the final gap to nine goals.

With this convincing victory, the French secured their place in the next round as expected.

Group A

Hungary 13-10 Montenegro
(4-3, 4-1, 3-1, 2-5)

Hungary pulled off a crucial win and are set to start the next stage with six points, taking pole position in the race for the semi-finals.

Once again, it was their defence that won the game, a sharp contrast to their World Championships silver medal-winning run, where outscoring their opponents had been their main weapon.

Although the Montenegrins found the gaps quite effectively in the first period, the Magyars had already launched a couple of fast counters that made a small difference in the opening eight minutes.

The Vigvari siblings, Vince and Vendel, were on target early on, Daniel Angyal converted on a man-up, and Szilard Jansik finished off a counter to keep Hungary in front.

However, Aljosa Macic (man-up), Danilo Stupar (perimeter) and Balsa Vuckovic (counter) kept Montenegro in the game.

That last goal proved especially important, as the Magyars missed a six-on-five opportunity to go 5-2 up, and the ensuing fast break brought Montenegro back to 4-3 at the end of the first quarter.

The second period saw a drastic change. While Hungary maintained their effective offence, scoring four goals once again, their defence began to click and limited their opponents to a single strike.

Calling their attacking display “effective” was no exaggeration – the Magyars took just 10 shots and scored eight times.

This disciplined approach was striking, given their traditional willingness to shoot from almost anywhere with the slightest opportunity.

This made the Montenegrins’ task much harder, as they were unable to use their favourite weapon, the fast counter, while their other option, the man-up, also failed to deliver.

Hungary killed three of four, while remaining clinical at the other end. After a tense three-minute spell of back-and-forth, the Magyars earned a penalty, which captain Krisztian Manhercz converted.

Within a minute, David Tatrai added another from six-on-five to make it 6-3. Although Jovan Vujovic pulled one back, Angyal replied immediately, also from man-up.

In the final two minutes of the half, Hungary denied two more man-down situations and, in between, Gergo Fekete scored a fine counter-attack goal to extend the lead to 8-4.

The third quarter brought a different challenge. Hungary, playing with only one classic centre-forward – Peter Kovacs – and starting the period without him, struggled offensively as Montenegro adjusted and tightened their defence.

The Montenegrins forced four six-on-five situations, but to no avail – Hungary killed all of them, conceding only once at even strength.

With two minutes remaining and the attack stalling, head coach Zsolt Varga called a time-out, which immediately changed the momentum.

Kovacs returned to centre-forward, earned a man-up straight away and converted it himself.

After a missed shot and another six-on-five, Fekete found the net again. To cap the surge, an action goal arrived with five seconds left on the clock, as Akos Nagy fed Adam Nagy for a powerful one-timer, giving the Magyars an 11-5 lead heading into the final period.

This two-minute storm at the end of the third did the damage. Montenegro went 0-for-4 on man-ups over six minutes, followed by a 3-0 Hungarian burst featuring two from man-up.

Although the Montenegrins enjoyed a strong spell early in the fourth, scoring two action goals in 41 seconds and killing a man-down in between, Kovacs struck again from the next six-on-five to halt their momentum.

Montenegro still managed to pull back to 12-8, scoring three times in 1:41 after just two goals across the middle two quarters, but Hungary’s defence soon tightened once more.

Hungary’s Kristof Csoma produced a couple of crucial saves, and Angyal sealed the contest with a counter-attack goal with 3:12 remaining.

Two late Montenegrin goals in the final 83 seconds did little to dampen the Magyars’ celebrations.

When it mattered most, their defence delivered superbly. The statistics told the story – saves (8-3) and blocks (6-1) were decisive in a match Hungary won convincingly despite being outshot 32-21, securing top spot and the maximum points for the next stage.

Group C

Netherlands 19-11 Israel
(4-3, 5-0, 5-5, 5-3)

For the opening eight minutes, the Dutch struggled to reproduce the sparkling attacking display that had carried them to a near-miracle against the Serbs on the opening day.

They scored four goals, but were far from convincing, while the Israelis made the most of their chances to stay close, trailing only 4-3 after the first period.

Then a single moment proved enough to change the course of the game definitively.

Benjamin Hessels and Tomer Arazi became entangled in the middle of the pool, and the Israeli freed himself with a kick that caught Hessels in the face.

Referee Andrej Franulovic opted to review the incident, and VAR confirmed the decision – Arazi received a four-minute expulsion, and Kas Te Riele converted the ensuing penalty.

What followed also underlined that the Dutch concentration level was well below what it had been against Serbia.

They added three more goals during the four-minute six-on-five, but missed several initial attempts, including clear chances.

Two goals came after collecting rebounds, while another went in after the ball struck the crossbar and rebounded in off the goalkeeper’s head.

Still, what mattered most was the half-time score, which stood at 9-3 after Tom de Weerd struck when the teams returned to equal numbers.

Some might also have noted that fortune appeared to repay the Netherlands after their winning goal had been disallowed at the very end of their previous match.

It was difficult to imagine Israel recovering from a six-goal deficit, although they continued to battle with admirable fighting spirit.

That resilience kept the third quarter level, with five goals apiece, but the Dutch victory was never truly in doubt. Despite missing further clear chances, their physical dominance ultimately told.

Israel were unable to prevent the Dutch from shooting from all angles in the final period. With 40 attempts, 32 of them on target, it was almost inevitable that 19 would find the net.

The result sent the Dutch through, setting up an exciting next challenge against the Spanish world champions.

Group C

Spain 11-12 Serbia
(3-3, 2-3, 2-3, 4-3)

The two giants staged another classic with one of the most dramatic finishes ever. The Serbs’ defence worked brilliantly, with their energy, saves and blocks propelling them to a three-goal lead late in the third.

Then Dusan Mandic’s four-minute ejection changed everything, and the Spaniards, despite their struggles, capitalised to take the lead.

Still, the Rasovic brothers won it for the Serbs with two calm finishes inside the last minute – quite a response after their day 1 struggles.

At the start of the game, a great block and a couple of brilliant saves from Unai Aguirre prevented the Serbs from taking an early lead, despite having two man-ups at the start.

In contrast, Alberto Munarriz’s first blast found the net during Spain’s opening six-on-five, and after another save by Aguirre, he added a counter goal.

Milos Cuk brought life back to the packed stands as he converted the Serbs’ third man-up.

A block denied Bernat Sanahuja on Spain’s next extra, and a penalty, buried by Strahinja Rasovic, brought the hosts back on level terms.

Soon, the Serbs took the lead as Vasilje Martinovic scored on a six-on-five, but Munarriz hit his third from the perimeter, with just under three minutes still to play in the opening quarter.

After this initial flood of goals, both defences stepped up. At even strength, the shots were less effective, and the score remained 3-3 until the end of the period.

A quick exchange of man-up goals by Martinovic and Roger Tahull followed early in the second quarter. Spain missed an extra, and midway through the quarter, Nikola Jaksic earned a penalty that Cuk converted.

Then Serbia goalkeeper Milan Glusac delivered back-to-back saves, with the second on Miguel del Toro’s close-range shot particularly impressive.

Glusac produced another fine stop to deny Alvaro Granados’ six-meter blast, while Aguirre kept the Serbs out at the other end, though Strahinja Rasovic’s rocket slipped past him, giving the hosts a two-goal lead for the first time in the tournament.

Marc Larumbe then converted Spain’s next extra to set the half-time score at 5-6.

The Serbs built further momentum as Glusac denied Granados on a six-on-five, while Nikola Jaksic scored from distance at the start of the third.

Sergi Cabanas responded with a fine finish, but Spain’s attack remained below par, missing a six-on-four despite two good shots.

The Serbs capitalised, with Rasovic scoring from a six-on-five to make it 6-8. Spain missed another man-up, and Nikola Dedovic’s shot crossed the line despite Aguirre getting a hand to it.

At 6-9, David Martin called a time-out, but his players failed to score in 28 seconds. On the next six-on-five, Granados’ shot was way off target.

Alejandro Bustos finally finished their sixth man-up of the period, making it 7-9 with 30 seconds left – giving them hope heading into the last eight minutes, but the Serbs had clearly raised their levels from Day 1.

Just 27 seconds into the fourth, the game took a sharp turn. An elbow by Dusan Mandic was caught by VAR, and the referees ejected the Serbian hero for four minutes.

Munarriz converted the ensuing penalty, but Spain failed to take full advantage of the situation, committing a penalty foul immediately afterwards, which allowed Martinovic to restore the hosts’ two-goal cushion.

Over 3:50 of a continuous man-up, Spain kept missing their opportunities – Marc Larumbe hit the crossbar, the next shot went out on a 2m violation, and the following attempt was blocked.

With 1:31 remaining on the man-up, David Martin burned his second time-out as his team were struggling to create shooting chances.

They eventually set up Biel Gomila on the two-meter line, who scored for 9-10. A turnover ended Spain’s last chance, but they equalised at even strength as Unai Biel was left unmarked.

The Serbs’ next man-up failed to produce a goal, while Biel added another action goal from the perimeter, putting Spain ahead 11-10 with 2:35 to go.

With 1:18 remaining, a time-out helped the Serbs earn a six-on-four after Granados was issued a red card for unnecessary roughness.

Aguirre made a great save, but after the corner, Strahinja Rasovic scored with 58 seconds on the clock.

Spain’s final possession produced nothing, and the Serbs earned another man-up. Viktor Rasovic stepped up to score the winner with seven seconds remaining and lift the roof off the Belgrade Arena.

The Serbs, who had struggled spectacularly two days ago, proved once again an eternal truth that no one should write them off – ever.

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Gergely Csurka for European Aquatics

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