Favourite teams all delivered on Day 12 so four more spots are booked in the Final
Eight tournament, to be held on 7-9 June in Genoa (ITA). The big game of Group A
turned into a lopsided contest as Olympiacos was too strong for Brescia (ITA) this
time.
The Italians could hold on towards the end of the first period but in the
second the Greeks started rolling. From 3-2 they rocketed to a 7-2 lead while
Brescia missed three man-ups. Being five goal down in Piraeus at the halfway mark
has never promised too much for any visiting team and miracles didn’t happen this
Wednesday either. Olympiacos won by seven (Konstantinos Genidounias netted 6)
and secured its spot in the F8 and enjoy a four-point lead with two rounds to go
while sitting in the first position.
Barceloneta joined them with a fine win in Budapest over OSC (HUN). The game
wasn’t that close as the final result (6-8) would suggest as the Spaniards rushed to
a 1-4 lead in eight minutes and even if they failed to score in the second, they
defended well keeping the Hungarians in safe distance. A double in 2:18 minutes
after 3-5 late in the third gave the Spaniards a calming lead and they sailed away
with their 7 th win in a row.
2016 champion Jug (CRO) and newcomer Dynamo (RUS) both earned convincing
home victories to pass Brescia (ITA), now they are two points clear ahead of the
Italians. This promises a thrilling finish for these three sides, though while Jug and
Brescia have one game in hand against lower-ranked opponents, Dynamo faces
Olympiacos in the penultimate round and will travel to Dubrovnik on the last day.
In Group B, Szolnok found it much harder to beat Spandau (GER) than perhaps the
title-holders expected. The Germans fought hard and proved once more while they
are on the verge of making the F8 for the first time. Szolnok could have had a less
nerve-wrecking finish but a rare penalty miss from last season’s MVP Andrija
Prlainovic prevented them from going 7-4 up in the third. Instead, Spandau hit
back for 6-5 and later managed to equalise after 8-6 to 8-8. However, Milan Aleksic
scored the game-winner from a 6 on 5 with 2:43 remaining to secure Szolnok’s F8
berth.
Spandau should still not be worried thanks to Eger which beat Jadran (MNE) in a
big battle. The host side took a 4-1 lead by halftime, that was narrowed to 5-3
before the last break but two goals in 53 seconds after 6-4 decided the outcome. It
sent Eger to the F8 for the 4 th straight occasion, while Jadran still sits five points behind Spandau and have only mathematical chance to make the cut. Spandau is set to win in Sabadell in the following round, if not, the last day’s clash between the Germans and the Montenegrins would be a life- or-death encounter.
Recco enjoyed another easy cruise, this time in Bucharest. Steaua did well in the
first half, trailed only 4-6 but the Italian giant posted a 2-7 run in the second and
needs one point against second ranked Eger in the following round to secure the
top spot.
The game of the bottom-ranked sides turned into an epic 30-goal thriller. Alphen
(NED) was on its way to earn its first point(s) in the competition as they led 10-7 in
the third but Sabadell (ESP) stroke back with five goals in 4:15 minutes and in a
brilliant finish they managed to win the game 14-16.
Champions League, Day 12
Group A
A Hid-OSC Budapest (HUN) v Atletic Barceloneta (ESP) 6-8
Jug Croatia Osiguranje Dubrovnik (CRO) v Waspo 98 Hannover (GER) 14-9
Dynamo Moscow (RUS) v Partizan Belgrade (SRB) 16-4
Olympiacos Piraeus (GRE) v AN Brescia (ITA) 13-6
Standings
1. Olympiacos 31, 2. Barceloneta 27, 3. Dynamo 22, 4. Jug 22, 5. Brescia 20, 6.
Hannover 9, 7. OSC 7, 8. Partizan 0
Group B
Szolnoki Dozsa-Kozgep (HUN) v Wasserfreunde Spandau 04 (GER) 9-8
ZF Eger (HUN) v Jadran Carine Herceg Novi (MNE) 8-4
Steaua Bucharest (ROU) v Pro Recco (ITA) 6-13
AZC Alphen (NED) v Astralpool Sabadell (ESP) 14-16
Standings
1. Recco 33, 2. Eger 28, 4. Szolnok 24, 3. Spandau 21, 5. Jadran 16, 6. Steaua 12, 7.
Sabadell 9, 8. Alphen 0
For stats and play-by-
