Györ to host high-octane clash of unbeaten sides in round 6
The group phase of the EHF Champions League Women 2025/26 heats up with round 6 this weekend, as the Match of the Week travels to Romania.
We need to have a good solid defence and be able to make the opponent not score too many easy goals also in the return run, and then of course not give them easy balls, not make too many mistakes so they can run fast with us. If we are good at keeping the ball on our side and we are good at not having so many technical faults, so we give them easy chances, I think it can be good for us.
We're expecting a tough battle, we're focused, determined, and we're working hard to achieve that. But we're not getting ahead of ourselves: it's still a Champions League group stage match, like all the others we've played so far. We have to win them all, and this one too.
Anything is possible. However, we have to perform at our absolute best and hope that Esbjerg, and Henny Ella Reistad in particular, have a bad day. They play at a high tempo, are outstanding in defence and, in Henny Ella Reistad, have what I consider to be the best player in the league. For me, Esbjerg is one of the strongest teams in the Champions League.
It is pivotal we get a win against Borussia Dortmund. If the top two spots are out of reach, it is important we get that third place. In the Champions League it is all about getting as many points as possible, and when you are finally playing at home, it gets even more important to get that win when you have that advantage.
Playing in Podgorica against Buducnost is very difficult. All the Montenegrin players have an incredible competitive streak. Buducnost is a team that fights to the limit. Its brains are Itana Grbic. They have a great line player, Ivana Godec, who can do a lot of damage on the six-metre line, and the experience of a great player like Jelena Radivojevic. It's going to be an intense and difficult match, but we're going to fight to win.
This match will be very important for us, as our goal is to advance from the group, and for that, we need to start collecting points. All our matches in the Champions League have been close so far, but we haven’t had much luck in the final minutes. Of course, travelling to Norway and playing against the national champions is never an easy task and it won’t be this time either, but I trust that we can play another tight match, and hopefully, luck will be on our side this time.
We are facing a strong Hungarian team, this is a very important home game for us. DVSC Schaeffler are one of the teams we will be fighting with for a place in the play-offs. We believe that we are capable to deliver a performance so that we can win the match. Our biggest challenge is that we have a lot of illnesses and injuries in the team, which means that we have few players available for the game.
It’s going to be a special game — a home match away from home. When we travel to Elverum, we know the crowd there will lift us up. We’ll give everything to earn our first points in the EHF Champions League.
It was great two years ago when we met them away, so we also know that there will be a lot of pressure from the spectators, but sometimes it is an advantage for us to be a bit of an underdog. On the other hand, we know that it will be a tough match, so we need full focus to take the two points.
We’re playing against Podravka, a very tough and tenacious team. It’s never easy to face a side like them. They drew against Odense a few weeks ago, so we know that at home we’ll have to give everything to get another win in the Champions League. We want to keep building on our good momentum.
This is definitely the toughest away game in this section. Brest is strong, defensively strong and leading in our group, and second in the French championship behind Metz. They have two dangerous left-footed players, a lot of French national team players and they play on home soil. All of us who are at the coach's disposal will give our best and fight to the maximum in order to try to return to Koprivnica with a positive result.
We will play against a very strong team — that is a fact. Odense is coming after a season in which they have played the final of the competition and it is one the best teams in the tournament. These are exactly the kind of games that you want to play both as a coach and as a player. The fans' support will be very important for us, like always, and we would like to thank them for that. On Sunday afternoon there will be a great handball game played in Bucharest.
CSM is one of the most physical teams we will face in this group stage. They defend very well in their 6-0 defence, so for us, the key to victory will be finding a way to break it open. It will, of course, be a very tough match, but also one where we see our opportunities — and we’re looking forward to making the most of them.
