Montenegro Secures Survival in A Division with Victory Over Britain

The Montenegro national goalball team clinched its place in the A Division after defeating the United Kingdom 7:4 in a crucial match for seventh place at the European Championship held in Pajulahti, Finland. This victory marks Montenegro’s equal best result in A Division championships, matching their performance in Turkish Samsun in 2021.

Finishing the tournament with one win, one draw, and five losses, the team encountered tough competition. Montenegro suffered defeats against Ukraine (6:5), Germany (8:4), and Israel (4:2) in the group stage. They managed to secure a quarterfinal berth through a draw against Portugal (6:6), benefitting from a better goal difference. However, their journey ended in the knockout phase, where they fell to Turkey by a score of 12:5 and lost to Poland 9:6 in the placement rounds.

In the decisive match against the United Kingdom, Montenegro initially trailed but quickly took control, ultimately maintaining their lead. Nikola Nikolić emerged as the top scorer, netting six goals, while Marko Nikolić added one more to the tally.

Head coach Nikola Čurović expressed dissatisfaction with the overall performance, despite the positive outcome against the United Kingdom. “This is a disappointing result, especially considering the plans and ambitions we had,” Čurović stated. “We showed a bit more against Great Britain, but it was still far from our level. The most important thing is that we won and secured our place among the top ten teams in Europe.”

Reflecting on the tournament, Čurović highlighted the quality of the competition. “We needed to win against Portugal; that point ultimately took us to the quarterfinals. After that match, it seems our confidence waned, and we lost faith in our ability to achieve what we came to do.” The team’s defeats against Germany and Israel further compounded their challenges as they entered the quarterfinals as the fourth seed.

Čurović noted that the players did not perform to their potential during the championship. “We are much better than what we showed. We need a serious analysis to identify what went wrong. Some things will have to change moving forward,” he concluded.

Representing Montenegro at the tournament were Marko and Nikola Nikolić, Miloš Ranitović, Goran Macanović, and Velizar Obradović, all led by coach Nikola Čurović and assistant Branislav Bulatović. The delegation also included team manager Milo Kastratović.