19:33
So, Kielce clearly in the driving seat in Norway. Talant Dujshebaev warned for Kolstad in the build-up to this match, but it seems the Kielce head coach has done his homework well – and his players are delivering...
... also with spectacular goals:
19:25 HALF TIME |
Kiel and PSG do get their nose in front just before the break, but Szeged and Zagreb have turned out tougher nuts to crack than many might have expected. And Kolstad have lost touch with Kielce in the second quarter, certainly an important learning experience for the up-and-coming Norwegian side.
19:16
Team timeout Kolstad. We said it before the match, and Christian Berge and his team of course knew it, too: Kielce are of a different level than, with due respect, Pelister. Kolstad trail 13:9 with five minutes left on the clock. Interestingly, nine different Kielce have players have scored so far, but no one more than twice.
19:13
With about seven minutes left in the first halves, in all three matches the visitors are leading – and that is some surprise for Szeged (in Kiel) and certainly for Zagreb (in Paris).
19:09
Tomas Mrkva picking it up for Kiel where he left it last week, when he was named Player of the Match of the MOTW in Zagreb.
19:02
Raul Gonzalez calls his first team timeout. PSG are surprisingly trailing Zagreb 10:9 after the opening quarter. What a difference for the Croatian side, who lost the match against Kiel last week basically in the first quarter.
18:59
No early run-aways: 6:5 to Kielce, 6:5 to Kiel, 8:8 between PSG and Zagreb...
18:54
Kielce missed the chance for an early two-goal lead, but so far nothing in it between Kolstad and Kielce after the opening seven minutes: 3:3.
18:46
Let's go! You can see all matches live on EHFTV (and yes, there is a tool in the right bottom corner that enables you to see up to four matches at the same time on one screen.)
18:36
The third match in the early time slot this evening is PSG against Zagreb – two teams that started the season in contrasting styles. While the French side took both points home from their challenging trip to Szeged, the Croatian team remained empty-handed after hosting Kiel in the MOTW, and then released head coach Slavko Goluza from his duties. Former assistant Andrija Nikolic is taking over temporarily and makes his EHF Champions League debut as coach tonight.
18:22
Also starting at 18:45 CEST is Kiel against Szeged. The German side opened with an easier-than-expected win against Zagreb in round 1's MOTW and will host Szeged with a lot of confidence. Even more so now two of their players return from long-term injuries: Sven Ehrig and Hendrik Pekeler.
Szeged went down on home court against PSG last week (31:29) and now face the next challenge... You could think of an easier start into a season than meeting PSG and Kiel as your first two opponents. And I don't want to say it too loud, but waiting in round 3 are... Aalborg, who are having a dream start into their 2023/24 campaign with a win at Kielce last week and a record 38:23 victory over Pelister yesterday.
18:11
All five matches tonight feature at least one team that played an EHF Champions League final in the recent past – and five (former) champions are in action. What a line-up!
A lot of attention, however, will go to a team that has never featured in a final... just because they are topflight debutants this season: Kolstad won their season opener with ease at Pelister last week, but at 18:45 CEST start a true tester for the Norwegian side: Kielce, runners-up in the past two seasons, are coming to Norway.
That is certainly a different cup of tea for Kolstad, even more so now Kielce are under a but of pressure since their opening game defeat against Aalborg a week ago.
18:00
Good evening and welcome to part 2 of round 2 in the Machineseeker EHF Champions League 2023/24!
We got the round off to a great start on Wednesday, but we have no less than five matches coming up tonight. Here is the menu: