Montenegro get first taste of victory in farewell match

The result was decided right on the buzzer, as Nemanja Grbovic grabbed a rebounded shot and scored the winning goal.

Serbia needed a victory to keep their chance of progressing alive. With the loss, Serbia leave without a win at the EHF EURO 2024, although they played a very strong preliminary round in a highly competitive group. Montenegro were knocked out in round 2.

GROUP C

Serbia vs Montenegro 29:30 (14:15)

• another thriller in group C came down to the final seconds, with Grbovic netting the match winner on the buzzer to secure the victory for Montenegro after a tense ending
• goalkeeper Nebojsa Simic, who made a total of eight saves, set the tone for Montenegro to lead through the first half as he stopped a number of early balls that the side capitalised on in attack
• Montenegro scored four unanswered goals before Serbia hit the net in the sixth minute, and held on to the advantage until the 37th minute. Serbia came within one just before the break and grabbed the lead for the first and only time at 18:17, after which Montenegro reclaimed the upper hand again
• in the first half in particular, both teams were led in attack by great games from the back court. Serbia centre back Lazar Kukic netted six from six in that period while Montenegro’s Branko Vujovic and Vuko Borozan combined for a total of 14 goals, including Vujovic’s 50th overall at the EHF EURO. Vujovic was named Grundfos Player of the Match
• a direct red card for Simic after a collision with Dragan Pechmalbec on a fast break attempt from Serbia in the 34th minute was a blow for Montenegro. But his replacement Nikola Matovic had a solid game of his own with five saves

Montenegro say farewell with a win

Three goals were enough to end Montenegro’s EHF EURO dreams this time around, as they were defeated by two goals in their opener versus Hungary and one in their second match against Iceland, which meant they could not progress even before taking the court against Serbia on Tuesday night.

The results highlight the competitiveness of group C, where Serbia are also on their way home after a very close campaign – a draw against Iceland, a one-goal loss to Hungary, and now this narrowest of defeats to Montenegro.  

Montenegro finally got to taste victory on Tuesday night and therefore rank third in the group, passing Serbia with the result as they collected two points.

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