Playing the placement game is never easy, as one has to gather the last strengths and get the head straight after a semi-final disappointment in order to end the season on a high.
Magdeburg proved that they had recovered best, but winning the first game of the day still felt like a proper achievement. Right from the off, the German team took the upper hand, thanks to their defensive cohesion and saves from Matej Mandić.
Despite trying to react throughout the game, Aalborg were never in the position to turn things around. Magdeburg proved consistent enough to cruise to victory — their first in the EHF FINAL4 placement match, after a loss on their first appearance in that stage in 2024.
3/4 PLACEMENT MATCH
H2H: 2-1-3
Top scorers: Mads Hoxer 6/10 (Aalborg Håndbold); Felix Claar 6/7 (SC Magdeburg)
- judging on the start of the game, Magdeburg seemed to have recovered better, even though the German side took some time to translate it onto the score board
- it was only when Tim Hornke scored his first goal in the 16th minute that SCM made their first real breakthrough, to then lead by four goals
- despite rotating almost their whole squad during the first half, Aalborg struggled to find solutions, and even when they did, they could not get past SCM goalkeeper Matej Mandić, who saved nine before the break
- Aalborg came out of the locker room with different intentions, putting more pressure defensively and finally finding some offensive solutions, mostly thanks to Mads Hoxer
- the Danish side’s momentum did not last long though, as SCM were quick to reclaim the upper hand, increasing their advantage up to seven goals multiple times
- the German side remained in control in the last quarter, allowing no hint of a comeback from Aalborg and finishing with a six-goal victory
- 2026 is the first time SC Magdeburg finish third at the EHF FINAL4, after their title wins in 2023 and 2025 and their fourth place in 2024
- Aalborg never finished fourth at the event before 2026, as they reached the final on their two previous participations, in 2021 and 2024
Matej Mandić: Preparing for the future
Among the SC Magdeburg squad, only a handful of players had not played the TruckScout24 EHF FINAL4 before this weekend. One of them was Croatian goalkeeper Mandić, who arrived in the club last summer, at the last minute.
While Bennet Wiegert might have chosen to celebrate Sergey Hernández in what was his last game with the team, the SC Magdeburg coach decided to have Mandič gather more experience for the future. And that was obviously a good decision, as Mandić made the difference in Sunday’s game, with his nine saves in the first half and 13 overall.
I am happy we managed to win today. We gave a good game. It’s not easy to focus again when you have lost the day before but, at the end, a medal is a medal and it’s important to finish the season on a win. It’s not the final, it’s not the title, but in the meantime, it’s still a win at the [EHF] FINAL4. So I am much happier today than I was yesterday.
We are not happy with the loss. We are not happy with how we played tonight. We missed a lot of things in the first half and then we were behind the whole time. No matter what we tried to do on the court, it seems like nothing was working. It is really frustrating for us.
