After the first leg last weekend, Esbjerg hold a three-goal advantage over Brest, having won 28:25 in France - the narrowest margin of the four play-off pairings.
Goalkeeper Anne Kristensen shone in the first leg for Esbjerg while the competition's top scorer Henny Reistad extended her season tally to 115 goals. Brest fought hard throughout, showing the promise of a big match in the second leg.
The MOTW on Sunday 26 March (14:00 CEST, live on EHFTV) will be only the sixth meeting in history between Esbjerg and Brest. The two sides met in the play-offs in the 2020/21 season, where Brest beat Esbjerg 63:54 on aggregate after winning both home and away, including a six-goal victory in Denmark. The French side went on to become runners-up to Vipers Kristiansand at the EHF FINAL4 that year.
Last season, Esbjerg and Brest were both in group A, with Brest beating Esbjerg at home and drawing 28:28 in Denmark. However, that defeat in France was Esbjerg's only loss of the group phase and they made it to Budapest, where they finished fourth.
In this year's group phase Brest were sixth in group A with five wins, two defeats and seven defeats, while Esbjerg finished third in group B with 20 points after 10 wins and four defeats.
Photo © Olivier Stephan
