Dejan coached a good game today. Didn’t do anything spectacular but he managed it well with his TO’s, subbing, shoot out line up, etc. They also changed their 6 v 5 play to 2 pop later in the game and it clearly worked in the 4th.
Dejan will probably get signed on for LA 2028 if his contract is expiring. Hard to argue against it considering they just won bronze. We need him to continue connecting the up and coming college players to pro teams in Europe after they graduate so we can peak for next olympics. Not sure another coach could do that. Especially since Luca, Obert, Holland, and maybe Hooper/Irving/Bowen will retire (hope they don’t).
Shout out to Obert for coming back and helping us get this medal, don’t think they could have without him as the secondary center.
From my knowledge the only player that definitely wont be back is Obert. I cannot picture Bowen, Hooper, and Holland stepping down right before a home Olympics. I do not know about Cupido but I would love to see him continue on with the MNT, he’s one of the best we have
My guess is that the question for most players returning will be their willingness to continue living in Europe and playing professionally. In the past, players have made the decision to get their “real lives” started and enter their desired professional fields which keeps them from playing water polo at the highest level. But the California based Olympics will definitely be a different form of motivation for the older guys. I could see a lot of them running it back, which might do more harm than good. We need some roster changes to be competitive again in 2028.
Not Olympics related , but close enough so I thought maybe I could mention it here.
Dusan Mandic, Varga Denes, and Unai Aguirre (Spanish young but super talented starting goalie) will be doing some water polo clinics in SoCal and Bay Area next two weekends, and one day in Virginia after that. Looks a little bit pricey in my eyes since each clinic is just 2 hours (check Water Polo Experiences) but could be worth it.
Adrian Weinberg was awarded with best goalkeeper of the Olympics at what, 22 yrs old? I predict that with 4 years of professional experience in Europe, he will be the best goalie in the world we’ve seen in a while
The last three Olympics the USA Women have been clear cut favorites. The roster was absolutely stacked 1-13. There was no one even close. Performance from players and coaches when teams close the distance is what matters. Team USA was still the best collection of players at these Olympics. Everyone can “get got” at a tournament like this, but not 3 times. Yes, the opposition is much improved, which is exactly how subpar coaching is exposed.
Move onto coaching the men’s team?! Are you serious?! There’s no head start there like he had with the women. That would be a disaster.
There’s a hot take for sure — Coach K subpar? The guy has won everywhere and everything beating teams along the way he had no business beating in college coaching then leading USA to 3 straight gold medals.
This Olympic team was literally a matter of seconds away from being in the final…these games come down to the players making plays and this team was literally one big play or call away from a gold medal game and possible win.
Belichick lost multiple Super Bowls and John Wooden had teams that didn’t win NCAA titles too, and I don’t think it’s hyperbole to mention Krikorian in the same breath in terms of success within the sport. That’s how good he has been.
What a subpar take Krikorian is a very good coach. BTW, if I remember correctly, USAWNT were the favorites in 2008 (with Brenda Villa, Natalie Golda/Benson, and others). Yes, de Bruijn had a fantastic game - probably the most dominant Olympic finals’ performance, but it just shows that being “stacked” does not guarantee anything.
Similarly, Serbia were clear favorites in Beijing on the mens side - we all know how it went
Krikorian is a very good coach. BTW, if I remember correctly, USAWNT were the favorites in 2008 (with Brenda Villa, Natalie Golda/Benson, and others). Yes, de Bruijn had a fantastic game - probably the most dominant Olympic finals’ performance, but it just shows that being “stacked” does not guarantee anything.