From minute one to minute 60, neither of the teams was able to hold onto the upper hand. While Barça enjoyed a three-goal advantage in the first 20 minutes, their momentum only lasted so long. Strengthening their defence, SCM levelled the score right before the break — although they could not take the lead until the start of the last quarter. Thanks to a last-minute save by Nikola Portner, on which Magdeburg capitalised, the German side earned the chance to win the TruckScout24 EHF FINAL4 for the second time, after their 2023 victory.
SEMI-FINAL
Barça (ESP) vs SC Magdeburg (GER) 30:31 (18:18)
- despite being ahead by three for most of the first half, Barça did not manage to retain their advantage and the teams were level at the break, 18:18
- three Barça players were sent off with direct red cards: Thiagus Patrus in minute 26, Jonathan Carlsbogard and Aitor Ariño in minute 59
- in a very tight second half, Magdeburg took the lead for the first time of the game at the 46th minute, 25:24
- SCM had to wait until the last second and the game winner from Hornke to secure their qualification for the final
- Magdeburg’s Omar Ingi Magnusson scored 11 while Dika Mem netted eight goals for Barça
- Magdeburg will play the final against Berlin on Sunday at 18:00 CEST, while Barça will face HBC Nantes in the 3/4 placement match at 15:00 CEST
Nail-biting clash of the titans
The start of the second semi-final was quite different to the first semi-final. Magdeburg played the surprise and had Gisli Kristjansson — who was questionable due to injury — on the court right from throw-off, but his team struggled to find their pace. Losing balls at the end of long possessions, the German side saw Barça increase their advantage bit by bit. After 11 minutes, the Spanish side were ahead 9:6, and SCM could not close the gap — and that was mainly due to Dika Mem. Scoring six out of six shots in the first 20 minutes of the game, the French right back proved his determination to win a second trophy in a row. But it was not enough for Barça to shake off their opponents’ resistance and just before the break, Albin Lagergren made the score even (18:18).
The second half was completely level. Whenever Portner would make a save for Magdeburg, Emil Nielsen would reply at the other end of the court. As soon as Ariño would score a goal for Barça, Magnusson would do the same for Magdeburg. And as the clock showed 14 minutes remaining, the score was as level as at the break, 24:24. After a steal, Magnusson scored on a fast break, putting his team ahead for the first time. But their momentum did not last long as Barça were quick to come back into the game, even though their leading scorer Mem suffered an injury.
In a very tense ending, which saw Carlsbogard and Ariño sent off, it all came down to the last action. After Portner saved Melvyn Richardson’s attempt, Hornke did not miss the opportunity to send his team to the second final in three years.
We believed in ourselves — in our performance. In every second of the game, it was not important to lead or to be behind. In the end, we believed in ourselves and in my opinion, that was the most important thing.
In the last two minutes, we stopped. We wanted to win the match, but in the end, we couldn’t score, and we paused. We have to learn from this experience, and we will come stronger in the future.
