EHF Champions League

Poland vs Hungary duels highlight round 6

Björn Pazen & Kevin Domas

01 November 2022, 10:45

After dropping their first point to SC Magdeburg in round 5 of the Machineseeker EHF Champions League group phase 2022/23, Telekom Veszprém HC will try to move forward again in round 6 when they travel to face Wisla Plock in Match of the Week on Thursday.

In group A, Paris Saint-Germain and Magdeburg are just behind the Hungarian side, and they may move up the standings after round 6. After taking points in their last two home games, HC PPD Zagreb will try to deliver again against C.S. Dinamo Bucuresti, in what already looks like a contest for sixth place in the group.

In group B, top-ranked side Barça host HBC Nantes — and both sides are on a victorious run. In the duel of two Spanish coaches, Pick Szeged travel to Lomza Industria Kielce, while Elverum Handball hope for their first points of this season when they host RK Celje Pivovarna Laško and THW Kiel need two points against Aalborg Håndbold to remain among Barça’s hunters.

GROUP A

HC PPD Zagreb (CRO) vs C.S. Dinamo Bucuresti (ROU)
Wednesday 2 November, 18:45 CET, live on EHFTV

Dinamo (sixth place) and Zagreb (seventh place) are currently tied on three points in group A
with 138 goals scored, Zagreb have the third least prolific offence of the EHF Champions League, just ahead of Elverum and Porto
two players in this game feature among the top five oldest players in the Champions League: Timur Dibirov (Zagreb) and Valentin Ghionea (Dinamo)
the latest meetings between the two sides date back to 1963, in the Champions Cup. Dinamo easily defeated Zagreb in the quarter-finals (31:16 on aggregate)
last weekend, Zagreb took another win in the Croatian league against Osijek (36:25), while Dinamo triumphed in the Bucharest derby against CSM (38:24)
Dinamo left back Ali Zein said "It's a very important game for us. At the same time, they are difficult opponents, especially when they play in Zagreb. We tried to prepare for the game very well and we have to play hard for 60 minutes to win this game. We will do our best to win."
Zagreb goalkeeper Dino Slavic said: "A tough match is ahead of us against Dinamo Bucuresti. They have a great team full of quality internationals, led by Lazar Kukic and Ali Zein. Our goal is to continue with good outings in the EHF Champions League at home."

MOTW: Orlen Wisla Plock (POL) vs Telekom Veszprém HC (HUN)
Thursday 3 November, 18:45 CET, live on EHFTV

after five rounds, Veszprém are the leaders of group A with nine points, while Plock are fifth with five points
both teams drew last week, as Veszprém lost their first point at home against Magdeburg, while Plock took their first away point in Zagreb
this will be the first time Bosnian left back Mirsad Terzik has played against his former club of Veszprém since leaving in 2021
Plock and Veszprém remain undefeated in their respective domestic leagues. Last weekend, Plock took the points against Opole (32:18) and Veszprém won the city derby against Veszpremi (48:27)
Veszprém line player Andreas Nilsson said: "I expect a tough game against Plock. They are a dangerous team, especially at home. We played against them in the pre-season, but now it will be a Champions League match. They fight a lot, so I expect a hard clash."

Our goal is always to win in the Champions League. You know that it is a very complicated game. For Zagreb, it is an important game. We have the same points in the same group and for us to take this game is very important. I think that we are in very good moment, but we need to win one game away and this could be one option.

Xavier Pascual

Coach, C.S. Dinamo Bucuresti

Paris Saint-Germain Handball (FRA) vs FC Porto (POR)
Thursday 3 November, 18:45 CET, live on EHFTV

while PSG sit in second place with eight points, Porto are bottom of group A with zero points
the Portuguese side are one of the two teams that have yet to take a point this season, along with Elverum
the two teams have played against each other six times since 2007. Porto won the first meeting, but Paris took the last five, including the last four games in the EHF Champions League
PSG's Kamil Syprzak is the second top scorer in the EHF Champions League, with 36 goals, while Porto's Jack Thurin has netted 22 times so far
last weekend, Paris took yet another win in the French league in Dunkerque (38:32), while Porto defeated Póvoa (44:26) in the Portuguese league
PSG coach Raul Gonzalez said: "Porto is a team that we know well, having faced them several times in recent years. Even if they still haven’t won a game in our group since the start of the season, we will have to be wary of them – like every team in the group."
Porto coach Magnus Andersson said: "We didn't had a strong start in Champions League and PSG is the most difficult game we have. So we are going with nothing to lose and just to make a good game."

GOG (DEN) vs SC Magdeburg (GER)
Thursday 3 November, 20:45 CET, live on EHFTV

after five rounds, Magdeburg are in third place in group A, with seven points, while GOG are just two points and one position behind
last week, Magdeburg managed to snatch a point in Veszprém, while GOG came back victorious from their trip to Porto
this will be the first time the teams have met in a European Cup competition
GOG's best scorer in the EHF Champions League, Jerry Tollbring, has netted 33 times so far, while Gisli Kristjansson has scored 24 for Magdeburg
three Danish players play for Magdeburg: Mike Jensen, Michael Damgaard and Magnus Saugstrup
both sides won at the weekend. GOG took the points in Kolding in the Danish league (30:26), and Magdeburg defeated Leipzig in the Bundesliga (32:24)

The memory of our game here against Porto last year, and in particular of our incredible first half, is certainly in the minds of all the supporters. But we have to forget it, put it behind us and approach this match by ignoring the past. We will be focused only on the next action to be taken. We are coming off a great away win against Bucharest, and we will have to capitalise on that to continue our momentum and stay in the top two places in the group.

Henrik Toft-Hansen

Paris Saint-Germain line player

GROUP B

Elverum Handball (NOR) vs RK Celje Pivovarna Laško (SLO)
Wednesday 2 November, 18:45 CET, live on EHFTV

Elverum are the only team in group B still waiting for their first point, while Celje have two points from their home win against Kiel on their account
Elverum have a current run of 16 Champions League matches without a victory (15 defeats, one draw)
Celje’s last away victory in the Champions League came in February 2021 – a 30:28 win at Nantes
Celje’s Aleks Vlah is number one on the top scorer list with 41 goals; Elverum’s best scorer is Serbian left back Uros Borzas with 22 goals
in their previous duels in the 2019/20 group phase, each side won their respective home match
in the Norwegian league, Elverum are fourth after beating Haslum 31:27 last weekend. Celje top the Slovenian league with six wins from six matches – but did not play last weekend

THW Kiel (GER) vs Aalborg Håndbold (DEN)
Wednesday 2 November, 20:45 CET, live on EHFTV

both sides lost their round 5 matches – Kiel lost 38:30 against Nantes, and Aalborg suffered a 39:33 defeat at home against Barça
with six points on their account, the Danish side are two points ahead of Kiel
Kiel won both of their home matches in group B, but lost all three away games
THW goalkeeper and current IHF Player of the Year Niklas Landin will join Aalborg in the summer of 2023
Kiel have won six of eight previous duels with Aalborg, but the Danish side won the last encounter, 35:33, on 24 November 2021
Aalborg’s Mikkel Hansen is ranked third on the top scorer list, with 35 goals, while Kiel’s best scorer is Harald Reinkind with 23 goals in 21st position
Aalborg top the Danish league after eight wins from nine matches, while Kiel are third in German league after seven wins from eight matches. Aalborg beat Fredericia 44:39 on Saturday, but Kiel did not play last weekend
Aalborg coach Stefan Madsen said: "Kiel is a new, big challenge for us. Both teams lost last week and have a lot to prove. I am looking forward to see our strength against the German team."

I am really looking forward to the game against Kiel. Kiel only have four points in the Champions League, but that does not paint the right picture of their strength, I think. But from our last game we also know that we can beat them, and I hope we can do that on Wednesday.

Felix Claar

Centre back, Aalborg Håndbold

Nantes showed they are a great team this season. Against Kielce they lost because their goalkeepers did not perform well but against Kiel they won easily by eight goals and it could be a bigger margin of victory. We respect them a lot because they are doing a terrific job and we’ll need to play very good to remain unbeaten.

Carlos Ortega, Barça head coach