"We need to and we want to win it. I would not like to think about the defeat right now, because we still have opportunities for the world championship," added Trifunović, who is in an unenviable position with his team. After five matches of the first part of the qualification, Slovenia only has two victories. If two defeats against Spain – the best European national team over the last decade – are completely acceptable, there has also been a big slip-up against Belarus, which has cost Slovenia dearly in the pursuit of the performance in China. It is simply not possible to make up for this defeat.

"I certainly think about it many times, but now I can’t afford to do so. It was a slip-up, but we have to go on and win," Trifunović said. The points are transferred into the second part of the competition. The group that crosses with Slovenia’s includes Turkey, Ukraine and Latvia, which will advance, all three already having won against Slovenia. Out of the six teams, which will merge into a new group, only three will qualify for the world championship. Only a victory is what counts on Sunday, otherwise the current European champions would only have a very slim chance left for China. The possibilities for them to win a place in the tournament have already diminished.