SUMMARY: Barça win fascinating MOTW; PSG and Veszprém drop points
The group phase of the Machineseeker EHF Champions League featured its final round before the winter break on Wednesday and Thursday, highlighted by an intriguing Match of the Week in France where Barça beat HBC Nantes 37:33.
22:43
And confirmation again that a French player has been named Player of the Match tonight – though it wasn't a Nantes player, it was Barça line player Ludovic Farbregas:
22:35
The stats after the MOTW: interestingly, Nantes end with a higher shot efficiency than Barça. It is fair to say that the French team's attack is not the reason they have lost this clash, it has been their defence, especially in the first half. Also, Barça's goalkeeper duo Gonzalo Pérez de Vargas and Emil Nielsen making the difference between the posts...
22:26
In the other games tonight, Kiel beat Aalborg 30:26 as 10 different players of the German team make the scoresheet, led by Sander Sagosen with six goals, while Kristian Bjørnsen has eight for Aalborg. It means that Kiel will remain in fourth place of group B.
Over in group A, Zagreb take a mighty important win over Plock by the exact same result: 30:26. The Croatian side is now just one point behind fifth-place GOG in the standings, while Plock's hopes to make the play-offs have suffered a severely hit tonight.
22:24
It looked so easy in the first half, it was so hard in the second. Barça come out on top in a fascinating MOTW against Nantes but have had to dig deep, as right back Dika Mem acknowledges right after the game:
We played really good today. It is always difficult to win here in Nantes. I think we played a really great first half, but it is normal, they play at home, they get back by one goal, so it was hard to win here.
22:15 RESULT | Nantes vs Barça 33:37 (16:22)
What a match it has been in the second half! Great work by Nantes to push Barça to the limit, but the defending champions step it just in time and finish with a clear win. Ludovic Fabregas the top scorer with eight goals - and the Player of the Match.
22:11
Barça avoid the equaliser by Nantes and instead increase the lead to three again: 35:32 with three minutes left. Wow, they might win it, but oh, have they been made work (and sweat) hard for this!
22:09
Elsewhere, Kiel seem on their way to victory in Aalborg (27:22 with eight minutes left), while all is still open in Plock, where Zagreb have a slim 24:23 lead.
22:02
What a comeback from Nantes! Backed by the loud crowd of 10,322 fans in the Neodif XXL they are now just one behind in the MOTW: 31:30 for Barça. This is a turnaround that did not seem on the cards at all at half-time.
Great stuff!
(As was this goal from Barça Domen Makuc earlier:)
21:56
Team timeout Barça. Carlos Ortega needs to gather his players as Nantes have suddenly reduced the gap in this MOTW to just three (31:28). From seven back to three, can Nantes keep this going?
21:49
Early tonight, we spoke about the influence of Xavier Pascual in his second season as Dinamo coach. Here is what the head coach has said after the draw with Veszprém:
I have a team that fight, fight, fight. It was very complicated in the first half, but then we came back. It is incredible, and doesn't matter who played. For me, it is not a question about one guy, it is all about our team. That is why I am very proud to be their coach. It is a great gift for our fans.
21:27
Also half-time leads for the visitors in the two simultaneous games, with Zagreb leading 14:13 in Plock, and Kiel 16:14 in Aalborg.
While those two games could still go either way after the break, it is hard to see another winner coming out of MOTW than Barça...
21:22 HALF-TIME | Nantes vs Barça 16:22
Nantes had XXL hopes from the MOTW in their Neodif XXL arena, but it is Barça with a XXL lead at the break. Nantes too weak in defence; condecing 22 times in the first half is just too much to handle. The half-time stats, especially in terms of efficiency, tell the story of this MOTW so far:
21:12
In Aalborg, Kiel goalkeeper Niklas Landin with an acrobatic save:
21:05
Nantes have beaten Barça only once in eight previous duels – 29:25 in a group phase match in December 2017. Can they repeat the feat five years later?
So far, it is all about Barça, who have gone 10:6 up in the opening quarter.
21:01
Elsewhere, Zagreb doing well with a 6:3 lead at Plock, while Kiel also have a healthy away lead: 8:4 at Aalborg. Are we going to close 2022 with three away wins?!
20:58
We are 11 minutes underway in MOTW and Barça are already well up on Nantes: 8:4. Barça's French international Dika Mem the leading scorer with four.
20:41
Just before the MOTW throws off, here are the match reviews from tonight's earlier games, written by Adrian Costeiu and Björn Pazen:
20:18 RESULT | KIELCE vs CELJE 36:28 (18:15)
In the end a clear result, as expected by many, in favour of Kielce. But the favourites have been made work hard for this, as Celje demonstrated their talent in impressive style for the first 25 minutes. Arkadiusz Moryto again Kielce's leading scorer, with eight goals; Ante Ivankovic has nine for Celje.
20:15 RESULT | DINAMO vs VESZPRÉM 31:31 (13:16)
It is a draw! A miraculous save by Khalifa Ghedbane on a last-second shot from Petar Nenadic saves the points for Dinamo. A deserved result for a match with two different faces.
20:10
If this match ends in a draw (it is 30:30 at the moment), Veszprém will join PSG as group A leaders with 15 points each.
Of course, Veszprém hoping for a bit more...
20:07
No matter how this match ends, but it is another confirmation of the great work Xavi Pascual has been doing. In his first year with Dinamo, after having won countless trophies with Barça, the coach not always managed to put his stamp on the Romanian team. Now in his second year, the hand of Pascual is more visible and Dinamo have become strong contenders – and difficult opponents even for the big teams.
20:01
Veszprém controlled the last part of the first half, Dinamo the first part of the second half. Amd here we are, stuck at 26:26 with 10 minutes left. Andrii Akimento for the hosts and Mikita Vailupau for the visitors both woth six goals from eight attempts the leading scorers.
But arguably Dinamo's nicest goal has come from Lazar Kukic:
19:53
While Dinamo vs Veszprém is wide open again, Kielce vs Celje keeps going the home team's way.
19:43
What is happening in Bucharest?! Veszprém have not scored in the first six minutes after the break, but Dinamo have – five times, and they now lead 18:16. What a bizarre turnaround this is!
19:24 HALF-TIME | DINAMO vs VESZPRÉM 13:16
Veszprém have edged ahead after the opening quarter and look like having this game under control. Remarkably, only five players for Veszprém on the scoresheet so far; both Petar Nenadic and Bjarki Mar Elisson with four goals.
19:21 HALF-TIME | KIELCE vs CELJE 18:15
Well, what a difference five minutes can make..! Celje suddenly lose their grip on the game in the closing stage of the opening half as Kielce use a 4:0 run to go 18:14 up, before Celje can at least reduce the gap to three before the break.
Experience counts, and that is Kielce's surplus over Celje, for sure.
19:14
Celje doing an impressive job in Poland so far, keeping Kielce in check. It is 14:14 at the moment. And Ante Ivankovic has netted six times already:
19:10
We are back level in Kielce: 13:13 in the 21st minute. Team timeout for Celje, as they have lost a four-goal lead (10:6) but want to keep their high level up now.
19:06
Veszprém and Dinamo very much in the balance for the opening quarter. And Petar Nenadic doing his thing:
18:56
Brave start from Celje in Kielce: the visitors from Slovenia are two goals up in the opening 10 minutes.
18:40
"Hey, Arpad, do you have a direct link to our match on EHFTV?"
"Sure, Cédric, here you go!"
(Of course, Kielce vs Celje is also live on EHFTV now.)
18:28
In the second match at 18:45 CET, there is also a top spot at stake – in group B, where Kielce can take the lead with a win over Celje... at least for two hours. Current leaders Barça will of course end the year 2022 on top of group B if they win the Match of the Week against Nantes later tonight.
I have to admit that I don't understand Polish, but I can imagine what it means when Kielce head coach Talant Dujshebaev uses the word "optimyzmem":
18:19
Veszprém can give themselves an early Christmas present: top spot in group A! Current leaders PSG lost to Magdeburg on Wednesday, opening the door for Veszprém, who are one point behind. However, in Bucharest tonight, the Hungarian side will have to do without their Egyptian star, Yahia Omar, as they have just announced on Twitter.
Opponents Dinamo will remain in fourth place, no matter tonight's result. However, they will want to keep the gap to third-place Magdeburg on two points like before this round, and they need a win for that to happen.
18:10
Good evening, and welcome back – for the last time in the calendar year 2022 – to the live blog for the Machineseeker EHF Champions League.
We are going to close round 10 tonight with five appealing matches, and the first two are set to throw off in just over half an hour in Bucharest and Kielce:
22:18 RESULT | GOG vs PORTO 34:33 (15:13)
A red card for Daymaro Salina in the penultimate minute and then a one-goal defeat... things are just not going Porto's way at all this season, and their story continues in the same fashion in Denmark.
Certainly not GOG's best match of the year, but a win is a win... Morten Olsen with 10 goals and Emil Madsen with eight their best shooters; Tobias Thulin important with 15 saves.
22:13
Exactly what you need in such a tight battle: a great goalkeeper!
22:09
This one is really going down to the wire: GOG and Porto are stuck at 30 all, with five minutes left. Impossible to predict who will take the points here tonight!
21:56
Porto just never give up:
21:51
Team timeout Porto. "Now we fall asleep in defence," says coach Magnus Andersson to his players. Porto with a strong start into the second half, but a 4:1 run has put GOG back into the lead: 23:21. This remains anybody's game!
21:24 HALF-TIME | GOG vs PORTO 15:13
A late turnover and a buzzer beater by Lukas Jørgensen give GOG a two-goal lead at the break. Porto still very much in with a chance to take at least one point back with them to Portugal. GOG's Morten Olsen with six goals the leading scorer, Tobias Thulin with nine saves (42%) a big factor to the home team's lead, too.
21:20
Team timeout GOG. The Danish side are having more troubles with Porto than they (and many others) might have expected before the match. On the other hand, we all know Porto are better than their one point from nine matches suggests...
Anyway, GOG 14:13 up with two minutes until the break.
21:16
Both teams have been in the lead, but GOG and Porto are currently level at 12 all. Great save by Porto's Sebastian Frandsen this:
21:12
Let's hear from Magdeburg goalkeeper Mike Jensen, one of the standout players for the German side in their excellent 37:33 away win over PSG:
We are really proud. Everything was fast today. We were really good in offence. During the second half, we scored on each of our occasions. It’s not often that teams win in Paris, so we can be proud of us today. It was a really good performance and we have to go on.
20:40
You know these EHF Champions League nights: no time to waste, so on to the next match. We go to Denmark where GOG host Porto in group A.
Just like all other matches, you can watch this game live on EHFTV, but depending on your location, geo-restrictions might apply.
16:45
Good afternoon, and welcome to the very last Machineseeker EHF Champions League live blog...
... in 2022! We are entering round 10 tonight, the final round before Europe's top flight heads into an eight-week winter break. Although, it won't be much of a real break for many of the stars, as they will join their national teams for the 2023 IHF World Championship in Poland and Sweden in January.
But first let's look at what is coming our way tonight and tomorrow. We are two hours away from throw-off of the first matches and here is the full playing schedule for round 10:
