The Serbian national team missed an excellent opportunity to keep their hopes alive for qualifying for the Final Eight of the Nations League. Gheorghe Crețu's charges took a 2-0 lead in sets against Germany but allowed a complete comeback and lost 2-3 (25:21, 28:26, 16:25, 18:25, 13:15) in front of their home crowd at "Belgrade Arena".
The Serbs started strongly and controlled the development of the first two sets. They dictated the tempo, made few errors, and didn't allow the Germans to find their rhythm.
After that, however, the picture on the court changed. Germany significantly improved its performance in serving, blocking, and defense, reduced unforced errors, and gradually took the initiative. The third and fourth sets passed entirely under the dictation of the Germans, who leveled the score.
In the tie-break, both teams went point for point, but in the decisive moments, Germany showed more composure and achieved a valuable victory.
The success also affected the FIVB world ranking. Germany gained 5.01 points and, with a total of 249.96, overtook Serbia, climbing to 11th place. The Serbs lost 5.01 points, remained at 240.19, and dropped to 12th position. The Germans were also more stable in key elements of the game, recording more digs in defense (87:85) and better reception (91:89).
The most effective player for Germany was opposite Moritz Rörs with 22 points, and Tim Brehme added 20. For Serbia, Veljko Mašulović scored 20 points, and Pavle Perić finished with 13.
After the match, head coach Gheorghe Crețu admitted that pressure had a significant impact on the team.
After this loss, Serbia has a record of 5 wins and 6 losses and has definitively lost its chances to qualify for the Final Eight of the Nations League. In their last match of the tournament, the Serbs will face Slovenia on Sunday.