Action-packed weekend awaits in round 2; Ohrid start title defence

Action starts on Friday 23 October, at 15:00 CEST, in Azerbaijan, as Kur meet MRK Sloga Doboj in the first leg of a double-header. Nine double-headers are scheduled for this weekend, with 19 second-leg ties also taking place.

• MRK Trogir and H71 have played three times in European Cup history and all three matches have been won by Trogir by seven goals; in the 2023/24 season, Trogir won 29:22 twice in round 2; last week, the Croatian side won 34:27 in the first leg in Hoyvik, Faroe Islands; the sides meet on Saturday at 18:00 CEST for the reverse fixture

• Förthof UHK Krems enjoy a narrow two-goal lead against HV KRAS/Volendam ahead of their second leg in Austria on Saturday; SC Kelag Ferlach and HC Fivers WAT Margareten need to mount a comeback against HC Alkaloid and Besiktas JK, after losing the first leg by nine and seven goals, respectively

• Czech side HC Dukla Praha travel to Norway to face Nærbø IL on Saturday at 17:00 CEST; Dukla won the first leg at home 33:28 and could eliminate the European Cup 2022 champions; Praha reached the Last 16 in the previous season, being eliminated by eventual champions GRK Ohrid; in 2023, the side even reached the quarter-finals

• all five Greek teams take the field this weekend; AEK (37:21 against Sabbianco Anorthosis Famagusta), Olympiacos SFP (30:24 against Netland MKS Kalisz), and A.C. PAOK (38:19 against RK Borac m:tel) enjoy comfortable leads, while GS Drama 1986 need to defend their one-goal advantage in Slovakia against MSK Povazska Bystrica; Ionikos A.C. N.F. take on AS SGS Ramhat Hashron in a double-header at home over the weekend

• after HC Berchem’s elimination last weekend, two teams from Luxembourg remain with a chance of advancing to the next round; HB Red Boys Differdange take on RK Gorenje Velenje in a double-header in Slovenia, while Handball Esch travel to Iceland, facing last season’s quarter-finalists Haukar

• the only draw in a first-leg match was a goal fest, as HC Motor and RK Slovenj Gradec scored 41 goals each; Tjaž Štaleker (12) and Veljko Stanojevic (11) combined for 23 goals for the Slovenians, while Danylo Rahozin and Vitalii Horovyi scored nine times each for the Ukrainian club; the sides meet again on Saturday at 19:00 CEST in Slovenj Gradec

Revamped Ohrid start title defence

In May this year, GRK Ohrid from North Macedonia were crowned EHF European Cup Men champions for the first time. Despite this achievement, last season’s squad has changed significantly. Kristian Pilipovic was outstanding between the posts in the final tie of last season, but has left the club to play for the EHF Champions League side HC Kriens-Luzern. Apart from him, players like Vuko Borozan, Kosuke Yasuhira and Gianfranco Pribetic have also departed.

However, Ohrid have also added quality. Croatian international Dino Slavić takes Pilipovic’s place in goal, Dominik Máthé has gained experience in the Champions League with Elverum Handball and Paris Saint-Germain, Filip Taleski has played for clubs in Germany, Portugal and Hungary, while Adama Keita has spent several seasons in the European Cup with AEK.

Ohrid start their title defence with a home double-header against Spor Toto SK from Türkiye on Friday and Saturday.

Photos © Rebud KPR Ostrovia Ostrów Wielkopolski (main), GRK Ohrid (in-text)