Dinamo cruise past Skjern and secure a historic berth in the EHF Finals

QUARTER-FINALS, SECOND LEG
Skjern Handbold (DEN) vs Dinamo Bucuresti (ROU) 34:38 (12:20)
Dinamo Bucuresti win 66:61 on aggregate

• the visitors took their biggest (nine-goal) lead just before the half-time, which significantly lowered the hopes among Skjern's squad for a comeback in the tie
• the defender, Robert Mihai Militaru received a direct disqualification in the 18th minute, but the red card still didn't derail Dinamo's tall and strong defence, while Joaquim Nazaré was sent off for the hosts in the second half
• Luka Cindric made a winning comeback from injury as the Croatian playmaker scored seven goals and didn't miss a single attempt, while his teammate - Lazar Kukic also found the back of the net on seven occasions
• Dinamo's second victory in Denmark this month after they won and eliminated Bjerringbro-Silkeborg in the play-offs at the start of April
• the talented left back, Noah Theo Anthony Gaudin scored 10 goals for Skjern and was the match's top scorer, while no other player in the Skjern's squad scored more than four goals
• the Red Dogs passionate ultras made the long trip to support their favourites in Denmark and they were pretty loud in the hall in Skjern even though they were in a small number

Cupara shines between the posts in Skjern

The super-experienced goalkeeper displayed a brilliant individual performance and became an unsolvable enigma for Skjern's attack in the first half as Vladimir Cupara made nine saves and recorded sky-high (45) percentage of save efficiency. Dinamo made full use of Cupara's excellence in the opening 30 minutes to build an uncatchable lead, which ultimately proved crucial in winning the second leg. The 30-year-old added a couple of more saves before the end of the match and thus, ended the return leg with 11 saves by his name and lowered the confidence among the home squad in clutch moments.

Photos © Jens Chr. Nordestgaard