The Montenegrin water polo team is traveling to Singapore in two days for the World Championship.
The “Sharks” will play in Group D, which includes Croatia, Greece and China.
The winner of the group will advance to the quarterfinals, while the second and third-placed teams will play in the round of 16 against the teams that finish second and third in Group C (USA, Brazil, Canada, Singapore).
The first major competition under the leadership of Dejan Savić, and the ambitions are the same as in recent years – to go beyond the quarterfinals.
"We are eager for success and victories, and we are going to Singapore in that mood. We are not thinking ahead, we are going match by match, if we want to be the best, we have to win everything," said Vasilije Radović.
After basic preparations in Croatia, the Montenegrin team had a test at a strong tournament in Budapest – they defeated Serbia, and then lost to Hungary and Spain.
Coach Dejan Savić noticed major fluctuations in his team's play.
"The third quarter against Hungary and the second against Spain showed some things that shouldn't happen. I think it's about concentration and aggressiveness, and that can be improved. It's not that bad, although the recurring oscillations are worrying," said Savić.
"The tournament in Budapest was not of any significance in terms of results, we tried some things for the World Championship. I am satisfied with how we prepared, I think we have progressed both as a team and as individuals. We will not immediately say that we are going for a medal, we will give our maximum in every match," said Filip Gardašević, one of four debutants at major competitions.
The Montenegrin team will be the youngest at the championship, in addition to Gardašević, the debutants on the biggest stage are 18-year-olds Strahinja Gojković and Balša Vučković, as well as the experienced Dmitri Holod, who has recently become a member of the Montenegrin national team.
"We are not just looking at the World Cup in Singapore, or next year's European Championship in Belgrade, but beyond - we are looking at Los Angeles in 2028 and Brisbane in 2032, when this team should reach its peak, whoever the coach is," said Savić.
The maximum our team has achieved in the last major competitions was the quarterfinals. A medal is expected from 2020 and a European bronze.
"The quarter-finals are the most stressful game for everyone, and in my opinion, this can be viewed from a different angle. In the younger categories, we actually only have two clubs on the club scene in Montenegro, and they practically play the final right away, and you don't get through those stressful situations that the quarter-finals and semi-finals bring. Every small mistake in youth is a big one in old age. I talked to the guys and my view of things is that no one is afraid of failure, but of success - what will happen if we go further. We have to solve that," said Savić.
Montenegro's first rival is Greece on July 12th (13:10 Central European Time), two days later there is a match against Croatia (11:35), and on July 16th against China (6:10).
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