03.05.2012, 10:16
Budućnost: Season of dreams

Hopes of reaching the final come true for Budućnost

Budućnost: Season of dreams

After being beaten seven times at the semi final stage, Budućnost finally fulfilled the dream of many generations of the club when they reached the final.

The Women's EHF Champions League Final is something the club has dreamed about since 1986, when Budućnost played in their first semi-final.

This year, few would doubt that Budućnost deserve to be in the final, but the Montenegrian champions wants to go a step further and win a major European trophy, having won three EHF Cup Winners Cups (1985, 2006, 2010) and one former IHF Cup (1987), now renamed the EHF Cup.

Last year, Larvik proved an insurmountable obstacle in the semi-finals, but this year Budućnost gained revenge on the Norwegian side, with two wins. The arrival of German goalkeeper Clara Woltering, pivot Dragana Cvijić and left wing Maja Savić, gave Budućnost quality and experience in positions where it was needed to achieve such success.

The first star of the team is one of the world’s best players from the past decade, Bojana Popović, the leader of the team and second highest scorer of the EHF Women's Champions League with 89 goals.

Also a great danger for opponent’s goalkeepers is right back Katarina Bulatović, who is third in the best scorer with 85 goals. With experienced Ana Đokić, who played in Gyori Audi ETO KC from 2002-2008, also Radmila Miljanić, Anđela Bulatović, Milena Knežević, Ana Radović, Majda Mehmedović and others. They all help make the departure of Jovanka Radičević (Gyori Audi ETO KC), Marija Jovanović (CS Oltchim Rm. Valcea), goalkeeper Sanela Knezović (CS Oltchim Rm. Valcea) and Dragana Pecevska (Metalurg) less painful.

As never before, it seems that Budućnost are ready to reach the pinnacle of the European game, especially having players such as Bojana Popović (five times) and Maja Savić (two) that have done so on several occasions.

For over two decades Budućnost has been unrivalled in Montenegro and in the former state union with Serbia, and also for the past three years in the Regional league. But it is clear that the biggest wish of team of coach Dragan Adžić is a trophy in the EHF Women's Champions League.

So far Budućnost have shown most consistency with 13 wins and just one defeat, away to FC Midtjylland, in a game devoid of any importance of results and played without three injured or ill players (Clara Woltering, Sonja Barjakratović, Katarina Bulatović).

Apart from Larvik, Budućnost overwhelmed FC Midtjylland, Byasen, Thüringer, Metz, Krim Mercator and CS Oltchim Valcea and their defence has proven their strongest feature time and again.

Larvik knows something about this defence, especially from the second semi final leg in Podgorica, where Budućnost defeated the former Women's EHF Champions League winners by 10 goals, and allowed the opponents to score just 13 goals in the whole game.

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TEXT: Saša Jončić