Summary: Magdeburg leave it late to beat Montpellier
22:42
Montpellier's loss today means only one team in the European League can claim a perfect winning record - Orlen Wisla Plock with a perfect 7 wins from 7 in group A!
Füchse Berlin lead the way in group B with two games in hand over the side level on points with them, Kristianstad.
Magdeburg top group C with just one defeat to their name from six games and Rhein-Neckar Löwen lead group D having dropped a single point on their way so far.
22:28
Rhein-Neckar Löwen enjoyed a goal-fest, winning 37:30 against Grundfos Tatabanya KC tonight. That victory extends their lead over the chasing pack in group D to four points, meaning their spot is all but secure at this stage.
22:20
We've been treated to so many tight matches today, plenty to look back at on EHFTV if you missed them this evening.
Pelister held on tight at the end to claim a vital win over GOG and boost their play-off hopes and Tatran Presov turned things around in the second half to claim their first win of the group at the seventh time of asking.
Montpellier HB 30:32 SC Magdeburg
Rhein-Neckar Löwen 37:30 Grundfos Tatabanya KC
HC Eurofarm Pelister 32:31 GOG
TATRAN Presov 24:21 Sporting CP
Kadetten Schaffhausen 24:21 RK Trimo Trebnje
22:13 | Full-time
Montpellier 30:32 Magdeburg
After getting his hands on to diddly-squat for 50 minutes, Jannick Green came to life late in the contest and it made all the difference for Magdeburg, so often it's more about the timing of saves rather than the quantity.
And with Magdeburg a goal up in the final minute, they pull-off a brilliant cross-court in-flight goal scored by Tim Hornke before Green makes a final penalty save.
While Green was the man of the moment late on, Omar Ingi Magnusson was Magdeburg's man of the entire match, scoring 10 goals to hand his side a win which keeps them top of group C.
21:59
A nice steal and empty net goal by Gullerud draws Magdeburg level before Omar Ingi Magnussen suddenly gives them the lead again. Montpellier need to respond but they find themselves up against a finally-awake Jannick Green in goal. 29:27 to the guests with eight minutes remaining.
21:49
A bit of ill-discipline creeping in for Magdeburg as Magnus Gullerud gets their fifth suspension, injuring Gilberto Duarte's shoulder in the process.
This gives Alexis Borges plenty of room to roam in on the line and he gives Montpellier their first two-goal lead of the day - 24:22 on the 44-minute mark.
Elsewhere, the Kadetten Schaffhausen vs RK Trimo Trebnje is looking tasty with the home side charging into a 16:14 lead, but not as tasty as this goal!
21:42
It has been a solid start to the second half for Montpellier, who take advantage of Piotr Chrapkowski's suspension to take the lead with Valentin Porte making it 20:19 to the home side after 38 minutes.
21:26
It appears we have a host of tight matches across Europe at the moment. Here are the half-time scores and only Rhein-Necker Löwen look well on their way to a win tonight.
Montpellier HB 15:16 SC Magdeburg
Rhein-Neckar Löwen 20:13 Grundfos Tatabanya KC
HC Eurofarm Pelister 15:16 GOG
TATRAN Presov 12:13 Sporting CP
Kadetten Schaffhausen 10:12 RK Trimo Trebnje
21:20 | Half-time
Montpellier 15:16 Magdeburg
Another French-German battle living up to expectations tonight. Magdeburg have kept their noses in front throughout the opening 30 minutes but could not create a comfortable distance between themselves and their hosts as Montpellier enjoyed a shooting percentage of 71, keeping them in the game.
21:11
Magdeburg make a change between the posts with Tobias Thulin coming in and he immediately makes a save against fellow Swede Fredric Pettersson. Down the other end, Christian O'Sullivan scores two in quick succession to give Magdeburg a 15:13 lead with four minutes left in the half.
21:01
An open game so far, which has seen both sides take practically every chance they get. Magdeburg's defence functioning just a little bit better though and they lead 10:8 after 17 minutes.
20:52
Magdeburg are off to the better start in France, taking a 5:3 lead after eight minutes. This promises to be an entertaining game if it stays close, with both squads full of stars and both playing an attractive brand of handball.
Earlier, I mentioned Kristianstad's late comeback win over Dinamo and here is the goal that saw them snatch the points, having led only once during the entire 60 minutes.
20:42
The one we'll focus on for the final set of games today is one between two former EHF Champions League winners - Montpellier HB (FRA) vs SC Magdeburg (GER), let's hope it delivers a game as interesting as the previous German-French clash.
It's been a while since Magdeburg have played in the top-flight but Montpellier won the competition as recently as 2018. It's the first time they meet this season and it's an important one in the battle for top spot in group C.
20:35
After all that drama, you'll be delighted to know that it doesn't stop there. Five more games to wrap the European League evening up. The 20:45 CET throw-offs are minutes away and the fans are ready and raring to go.
Montpellier HB vs SC Magdeburg
Rhein-Neckar Löwen vs Grundfos Tatabanya KC
HC Eurofarm Pelister vs GOG
TATRAN Presov vs Sporting CP
Kadetten Schaffhausen vs RK Trimo Trebnje
20:19
Only one team appeared happy at the end of that game and it was the visitors from France. The draw means Berlin remain top of group B and Nimes a point behind them.
Elsewhere in this group, Kristianstad just snatched a victory out of nowhere against Dinamo Bucuresti. Trailing by four at stages of the second half, the Swedish side scored three in the final two minutes to win 29:28. That win puts them level with Berlin at the top, though they have played two games more.
Here's an overview of the games which have just concluded.
Besiktas Aygaz 25:31 RK Nexe
Orlen Wisla Plock 35:20 HC Metalurg
Füchse Berlin 34:34 USAM Nimes Gard
C.S. Dinamo Bucuresti 28:29 IFK Kristianstad
Chekhovskie medvedi 30:35 Fivers
20:15 | FULL-TIME
Füchse Berlin 34:34 USAM Nimes Gard
Nimes draw level but are soon a man short for the final two minutes. Fabian Wiede flies through to give Berlin the lead but it doesn't last long as O'Brian Nyateu equalises and forces a two-minute suspension for Paul Drux (he didn't deliver, see previous post) - the old one-two.
That means Lasse Andersson comes back on and immediately scores his ninth goal. Then with the final play of the game, the ball is whipped out to Julien Rebichon on the left wing, who equalises for Nimes on the buzzer.
A really entertaining clash and I feel a draw is a fair result.
20:06
Berlin keeping their noses in front, just, as we enter the final five minutes and Desbonnet pulls off two great saves. Top scorer Andersson has been replaced by Paul Drux, will he deliver? 32:31 to Füchse.
19:59
Neither goalkeeper covering themselves is much glory tonight but both Dejan Milosavljev and Remi Desbonnet have the class to turn it on and turn the game in their side's favour in these final minutes.
28:28 with 10 minutes to play...
19:53
There is a bit of a tussle between the teams as Luc Tobie makes rash challenge using his forearm, Lasse Andersson reacts to it and both get a suspension.
In that two-minute period, Berlin fail to capitalise on a man advantage in attack and allow Nimes to draw level through Sanad's 10th goal - making it 26:26 after 46 minutes.
19:39
The second half is underway in Berlin and both sides have started strong, with Marko Kopljar bringing Füchse level at 19:19 with five minutes played.
19:27
Sanad is not the only right wing impressing at the moment. Check out these goals from around the European League tonight.
And this is how the current games look at half-time:
Besiktas Aygaz 10:14 RK Nexe
Orlen Wisla Plock 16:10 HC Metalurg
Füchse Berlin 16:17 USAM Nimes Gard
C.S. Dinamo Bucuresti 14:12 IFK Kristianstad
Chekhovskie medvedi 19:12 Fivers
19:22 | Half-time
Füchse Berlin 16:17 USAM Nimes
An all-action first half in Berlin ends with a cracking goal by Nimes' Ahmed El Sayed to give his side a 17:16 lead at the break.
Mohamed Sanad leads all scorers with six so far, though with only five goalscorers, I feel they'll need to find some more goalscoring threats to keep this rate of scoring up.
19:16
An interesting factor here will be squad depth and it's something already on show as Berlin coach Jaron Siewert has already rotated the bench a fair bit in the back court.
It is not bothering Nimes too much so far as they are level 14:14 with minutes left in the first half.
19:07
Nimes goalkeeper Remi Desbonnet has suddenly hit inspired form with a few saves and a goal of his own as the guests draw level 10:10 after 19 minutes. Berlin have a scrap on their hands tonight.
18:58
After misfiring a bit in the opening minutes, Lasse Andersson has taken control of the game, particularly in transition attack, and his three goals have propelled Berlin to an 8:5 lead.
At last month's World Championship, he was used almost exclusively in defence by Denmark. And though he was used very well, he's undoubtedly happy to be getting a chance to show off his attacking prowess again.
18:52
Füchse putting on a show before the game, even without a crowd, and they put on a good show in the opening minutes, taking a 3:1 lead.
Nimes have found their rhythm though and two quick goals from right wing Mohamed Sanad have given them a 4:3 lead after 7 minutes.
- Füchse Berlin are one of the top candidates to win the trophy and remained invincible in group B
- both teams come into the game on the back of victories last week
- the German side are on top of the group with nine points, while Nimes are second with eight points
18:44
18:38
No rest for the wicked as we move straight on to the 18:45 CET throw-offs. Five games on the way in this game window and the focus here will be on Füchse Berlin vs USAM Nimes Gard, while we keep an eye on the other games and see what catches the eye.
Besiktas Aygaz vs RK Nexe
Orlen Wisla Plock vs HC Metalurg
Füchse Berlin vs USAM Nimes Gard
C.S. Dinamo Bucuresti vs IFK Kristianstad
Chekhovskie medvedi vs Fivers
18:29 | FULL-TIME
Alingsas HK 23:31 CSKA
A much-improved second half from Alingsas, though it's fair to say CSKA took their foot off the gas after completely dominating the first half.
Perhaps the second half performance will give the Swedish side some self-confidence as they must pick themselves up and get ready for the reverse fixture taking place tomorrow afternoon.
18:13
A great example below of how well-worked CSKA's attack has been today. While Alingsas have found more joy down the other end, they cannot stop the Russian side's attack and it's a 25:18 lead for them as we enter the final 10 minutes.
17:58
Alingsas have come out of the dressing room a different team for the second half, scoring more goals in seven minutes than they did in the entire first half.
CSKA still looking fairly comfortable, nevertheless, leading 19:11.
17:37 | Half-time
Alingsas HK 5:16 CSKA
Well, we're only halfway through but I think it's fair to say that this game is done and dusted as a contest. Only one team has shown up so far and that is CSKA, leading by 11.
With two points this afternoon, CSKA will draw level with Montpellier in second place in group C, before they face Magdeburg later in tonight's headline match.
17:28
This game could get out of hand. CSKA not doing anything particularly flashy, they're just damn good at what they do. They're creating solid scoring opportunities in attack, alongside many counter attacks, and forcing Alingsas into low percentage shots. The young Swedes are looking a bit lost and currently trail 15:5 after 24 minutes.
17:17
We are a quarter of the way through this match and Alingsas are finding life very difficult in attack. Struggling to break down CSKA's defence and conceding easy counter-attack goals. The Russian side lead 8:4!
17:09
After a cagey start by both sides, CSKA grasp some early control and an Aleksei Fokin fast break extends their lead to 4:1, prompting an Alingsas timeout after seven minutes.
17:01
The European League evening has begun. We saw how well CSKA coach Velimir Petkovic did with the Russian national team at Egypt 2021 last month, can he continue to work his magic with his club team?
16:52
Not long until throw-off in Russia and it appears Alingsas are doing their best to fit in with the local winter style.
16:44
We are off to an early start today, beginning in Moscow with Alingsas HK (SWE) vs CSKA (RUS).
There were concerns that the Swedish team might travel without their top scorer Andreas Lang but he is in the squad today. However, William Andersson Moberg is out.
Alingsas lost to Nexe last week, leaving them fifth in group C, while CSKA are in third place as they prepare for their first European game of 2021
16:30
Good afternoon everyone and welcome to our live blog for today's EHF European League action. We're spoiled for choice today with 11 matches taking place. Here's our schedule.
17:00 CET
Alingsas HK vs HC CSKA
18:45 CET
Besiktas Aygaz vs RK Nexe
Orlen Wisla Plock vs HC Metalurg
Füchse Berlin vs USAM Nimes Gard
C.S. Dinamo Bucuresti vs IFK Kristianstad
Chekhovskie medvedi vs Fivers
20:45 CET
Montpellier HB vs SC Magdeburg
Rhein-Neckar Löwen vs Grundfos Tatabanya KC
HC Eurofarm Pelister vs GOG
TATRAN Presov vs Sporting CP
Kadetten Schaffhausen vs RK Trimo Trebnje
