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16.45 Olympiacos Piraeus (GRE) v Novi
Beograd (SRB)
Theodoros Vlachos, coach, Olympiacos
“The situation formed in the group
after our defeat by Ferencvaros does not satisfy us, since our presence in
Belgrade is no longer in our hands, though Olympiacos is a team that belongs to
the elite of Europe and always fights for distinction. On Wednesday we want to
return to the winning path in the Champions League and exhaust all the chances
we still have for our presence in Belgrade.”
Konstantinos Genidounias, player,
Olympiacos
“After the last game against
Ferencvaros, the qualification to Final8 does not depend on us, but we have to
present ourselves the best way we can and get two victories in the last two
games, chasing as many chances as we can have. We come from claiming the Greek
Cup on Sunday, and we are very good psychologically for the match against Novi
Beograd.”
Igor Milanovic, coach, Novi Beograd
“We are expecting a great challenge
in Athens. Olympiacos has a very strong team, among the best in all Europe.
They are always very tough opponents, especially when they are playing at home.
They need to win if they want to qualify for the Final Eight so they will be
highly motivated. But I believe in my team. I am sure that all players will be
dedicated to win this game and I hope that we will have a very good
performance.”
Drasko Gogov, player, Novi Beograd
“Olympiacos is one of the greatest
teams in Europe. They still had their chances to qualify for the Final Eight,
and I must admit that they are among the top-quality teams in the Champions
League this season. A very tough game is ahead of is, because for every team in
Europe it is very hard to play in Athens. Also, they have the best player in
the world Filip Filipovic, he is the toughest rival, but it is always a great
honour and pleasure to play against him. We don’t have any kind of pressure, but
we will do our best to try to win and try to take the best possible ranking
before the Final Eight tournament.”
19.00 Dinamo Tbilisi (GEO) v Jadran
Split (CRO)
Dejan Stanojevic, coach, Dinamo
“We have two more games this season
in the Champions League, which was one big and good school for us. We are a
much better team today than at the beginning of the season. We have succeeded
in all elements and segments of water polo. We have two more games in which we
need to continue our progress and development. True, we have big problems in
the last 7-8 days, we only have seven players in training due to injuries and
illness. It is difficult to train and prepare for the upcoming matches amidst
such conditions, but that is a fact and it must not affect our motive and
desire. And even though we have been with only 7 players for 7 days now, the
motivation is great among the players who are in training. We will see what
kind of team we could line up against Jadran, but the motive, desire and
fighting spirit must and will be at the highest level.”
Marko Jelaca, captain, Dinamo
“We were waiting for this game for a
long time because I think that we can maybe even take some points if the things
work out. We know what we can expect from Jadran Split and I hope that we are well
prepared for every possible situation in the game. We need to start very hard
from the beginning, punish every mistake of theirs and take every opportunity
they may provide us. I hope also that the stands will be full and that we will
have the support from our fans because with them it’s much easier to play.”
Mile Smodlaka, coach, Jadran
“This is a hard and long trip for us.
Our focus is on Croatian Championship which we want to win.”
Zvono Butic, player, Jadran
“We will use this game to prepare for
our upcoming Croatian Championship final against Jug.”
19.00 FTC-Telekom Budapest (HUN) v
Radnicki Kragujevac (SRB)
Zsolt Varga, coach, FTC
“We’ve made great strides towards the
Final Eight in recent rounds. With those two victories in Belgrade and Athens we
regained control and the group ranks look more favourable now. However, the job
is not done yet and we face a great battle on Wednesday. Our road game in
Kragujevac was a long time ago but still aches as we let a sure-looking victory
slip away from us. Now it serves as a reminder that Radnicki is not to be taken
lightly: we need to be focused, disciplined and play well in all four quarters
to gain victory and edge closer to reaching our next goal.”
Uros Stevanovic, coach, Radnicki
“This match has far greater
significance for Ferencvaros, who is fighting for F8, while we no longer have a
chance for the final tournament. However, we want to compete with the best
European teams and make progress through games like this.”
Luka Pljevancic, player, Radnicki
“We had several bad games in which we
fell both on the playing and mental levels. We tried to raise our form through
four friendly matches against Pro Recco in Kragujevac. As we no longer have a
chance for F8, the match with Ferencvaros will serve us as preparation for the
semi-finals of the Serbian Championship against Partizan, but we will also try
to present ourselves in the best way against one of the best teams in Europe.”
20.15 Zodiac Atletic Barceloneta
(ESP) v AN Brescia (ITA)
Elvis Fatovic, coach, Barceloneta
“Our next game with the Brescia is
very demanding because of their defence. Their defence is the most powerful in
this group and maybe in the whole Champions League. They have really played
consistently the whole year. They are strong as a team and the play for each
other. They have so many different options and variations in defence and in
attack, so it’s not easy to play with them. But we are in a very great moment,
so I expect one more good game for us. The key will be the defence.”
Marc Larumbe, player, Barceloneta
“The game against Brescia will be a
vital game for both teams. On one hand, Brescia will want to win in order to
get mathematically the first position in this group. While on the other hand,
our team Zodiac CNAB will have to play its best to get the three points to book
our ticket to the Final 8 in Belgrade.”
Felipe Perrone, player, Barceloneta
“I think this game is going to be one
of the most highly expected matches of the season. It has great ingredients to
be the most exciting game. Brescia has a very modern game, they are the current
Italian Champions and ranked first in our group and they beat us in our last
game. Both teams play very dynamic water polo, with a lot of movement, and I
think a lot of people are looking forward to this match. For us, it is
essential to ensure qualification because we have to win at least one of the
next two matches.”
Group B (Tuesday)
18.15 Waspo 98 Hannover (GER) v
Spandau 04 Berlin (GER)
Karsten Seehafer, coach, Hannover
“Now we have only important games and
in these matches we are able to play our best water polo with our best players.
As of now, all players are fit.”Predrag Jokic, assistant coach, Hannover“I
expect an exciting game, we play in our swimming pool. Repeat the Budapest game
and I think we can get the victory.”
Moritz Schenkel, goalie, Hannover
“The game on Wednesday is our final,
we have the chance to qualify for the Final 8. We are highly motivated, and we
will fight till the last minute of the game.”
Marko Macan, player, Hannover
“We performed a small miracle in
Budapest, but it might not matter if we don’t beat Spandau or Jug. The first
step is Spandau, and we want to confirm our place in Belgrade right away in
this match.”
Petar Kovacevic, coach, Spandau
“We like to play in the ‘Stadionbad’,
which is our lucky pool. It will be one of our last two Champions League games
this season. We have improved a lot in the last weeks and are looking forward
to the new challenge. Both teams know each other very well. We have already
played 5 times this season. After this game, we probably have 4-6 games with
them in the German Cup and in the playoffs on the schedule. There are no
surprises – only motivation and high performance.“
19.00 Genesys OSC Budapest (HUN) v
Crvena Zvezda (SRB)
Daniel Varga, coach, OSC
“This will be our last game in our
swimming pool in this season. Unfortunately, we are in a bad position in our
group, but we need to stay focused and stay on our path. On Tuesday we want to
get three points, to satisfy our supporters and to get in shape for the final
games against Ferencvaros in the Hungarian league. Let me add, that for me, as
a young coach, it will be an honour to match with Zvezda’s head coach Dejan
Savic.”
Vince Vigvári, player, OSC
“Crvena Zvezda is a really strong
team especially with their new head coach. Based on their last game against
Recco, they are in a pretty good shape. I expect a very difficult match. We
will do everything in order to win this game.”
Vladimir Misovic, player, Zvezda
“On Tuesday we meet with OSC in
Budapest – if we play the same game as against Pro Recco, then we will surely
win. We trained and prepared for the game, so let the better win!”
19.30 CN Marseille (FRA) v Jug
Adriatic Osiguranje Dubrovnik (CRO)
Milos Scepanovic, coach, Marseille
“The team from Dubrovnik is a big
team that has participated in the Champions League for a very long time and
especially since it is still well ranked. We will beware of it. To do this, we
will impose our rhythm of play from the start of the match to win again in
front of our home crowd. We know that we have qualified for the Final 8 but we
have to do everything to win and gain more confidence. It’s a preparation for
the Final 8.”
Thomas Vernoux, player, Marseille
“It’s a key match to have a chance to
claim the first place against Pro Recco, the reigning European champions. It’s
also the last home game in the Champions League, we also want to be full of
confidence to tackle this final stretch, in the French Championship and also in
the Final 8. For all these reasons we want to give everything to get this
victory. Knowing that the Dubrovnik team is a very good team, we are keen to
play our best game.”
Vjekoslav Kobescak, coach, Jug
“Ahead of us is a match of prestige
given that both Marseille and we have secured a place in the Final Eight. They
beat us at home, we will try to hit back the same way.”
Filip Krzic, player, Jug
“A tough match awaits us against a
team that lost only one game this season and beat us in Dubrovnik in the first
part of the season. We will try our best to come back from Marseille with a
positive result.”
20.00 Steaua Bucharest (ROU) v Pro
Recco (ITA)
Zeno Bertoli, player, Pro Recco
“We are facing the last phase of the
season, we’ll challenge a team that is technically inferior to us, but every
Champions League match must be faced with the utmost concentration because it
can hide pitfalls as we saw in Belgrade. A physical match awaits us that will
help us refine our game automatisms.”
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