SUMMARY: FTC and Motor secure last two L16 tickets; Nexe clinch group top spot
It is the last day of the EHF European League Men 2022/23 group phase, and PAUC, FTC, HC Motor and HC Eurofarm Pelister are all still hoping for a place in the Last 16.
20:23
After an incredible first half performance, Valur simply didn't manage to hold on to the lead with Ystads closing the gap to only two goals until the end of the second half which means Swedish team will advance through to the knock-out stage from the second position in the group. Value are now waiting to see if FTC manages to defeat Flensburg as such an outcome would bring the Icelandic team to the fourth spot.
German Göppingen has managed to reach a two-goal win over Montpellier which will surely boost their confidence going into the knock-out stage, but it is not enough for them to overtake Montpellier's top spot.
Cadets and Skjern have in the end secured comfortable home wins.
20:15 FULL TIME
YSTADS IF HF - VALUE 33:35
FRESH ON GÖPPINGEN - MONTPELLIER HB 27:25
CADETS SCHAFFHAUSEN - TATRAN PRESOV 38:30
SKJERN HANDBOLD - BALATONFÜREDI KSE 32:26
20:08
Oliver Rabek demonstrates how to 'catch and shoot'.
📖 If you were looking for the definition of team effort, watch this 👇🏼
— EHF European League (@ehfel_official) February 28, 2023
Oliver Rabek scoring for Tatran Presov 💚#ehfel pic.twitter.com/uFDbeT7Gcn
20:06
With only three minutes left to play, Valur leads 32:33 in Sweden. Göppingen is, on the other hand, two goals ahead of Montpellier which means French team will most likely manage to keep the top spot in the group.
19:56
Kim Andersson of Ystads IF scores his fifth of the night as the Swedish team gets completely back into this one narrowing the gap to only two goals! What a game in Sweden! With ten minutes to go until the final buzzer, the result is 28:30.
19:49
A little under 15 minutes into the second half, Ystads has managed to narrow the gap to only five goals versus Valur (24:29). Anton Mansson has six goals, Jonathan Svensson five for the Swedish team. Once again, Valur needs a three-goal win (or more) in order to overtake Ystads in the second place of the group B.
19:40
Five minutes into the second half, Göppingen has managed to widen the gap to four goals as they are aiming for the eight-goal win that would push them to the top spot in their group.
19:30
Axel Goller took his time with this one making sure he puts it behind goalkeeper's back.
Axel Goller stealing the ball AND the spotlight today 🔦👏#ehfel | @FRISCHAUFGP pic.twitter.com/6JcmZM0Ka8
— EHF European League (@ehfel_official) February 28, 2023
19:24
Valur is playing an incredible match led by Oskarsson, Valencia and Magnusson who have scored four goals each in the first half. When you add Bjorgvin Pal Gustavsson and his eight saves into the equation you get an eight-goal lead which will be hard for Ystads to catch in the second half.
In Germany, Kozina and Schimdt are leading Göppingen that is leading 14:11 against Montpellier at the break. Maring Sego has eight saves. As a reminder, Göppingen needs an eight-goal win to finish the group stage on top of the group.
In Switzerland, Kadetten lead 20:15, and in Denmark it is 18:14 in favor of Skjern.
19:20 HALF TIME
YSTADS IF HF - VALUR 13:21
FRISCH AUF GÖPPINGEN - MONTPELLIER HB 14:11
KADETTEN SCHAFFHAUSEN - TATRAN PRESOV 20:15
SKJERN HANDBOLD - BALATONFÜREDI KSE 18:14
19:07
Ystads is going to need a lot more of this in case they want to get back into this one. The result is 9:15 with ten minutes left to play in the first and Valur has possession.
⚠️ Having three opponents in front of you? No problem for Jonathan Svensson ✅#ehfel | @YIFhandboll pic.twitter.com/k5fgAbd8Lh
— EHF European League (@ehfel_official) February 28, 2023
19:05
An incredible performance from the Icelandic side in Sweden so far as they lead 7:14 about midway through the first. Arnor Snaer Oskarsson and Magnus Oli Magnusson have scored four each so far while Bjorgvin Pal Gustavsson has five saves. As the things stand at the moment, Valur will overtake Ystads' second position in group B.
18:58
Three goals for Arnor Snaer Oskarsson already as Valur leads Ystads 5:8 in Sweden. In Germany, Göppingen and Montpellier are levelled at 7:7. In Denmark, Skjern leads 7:5 with Christoffern Bonde stopping no less than 50.00% of shots heading his way so far.
18:50
Quick-fire double from Lukas Urban puts Tatran three goals ahead (0:3) away from home against Kadetten Schaffhausen. In Sweden, the result is 2:2, and in Göppingen the hosts are 3:2 ahead with five minutes on the clock.
18:43
With only two minutes to go, a final glance at the EHF European League group B standings ahead of the final group stage round.
18:35
Only ten minutes left until the first whistle in Ystads, in what will be an important game for both teams as Ystads can still finish second or third and Valur can move up (to the second place), or down (to the third). As a reminder, Valur needs a three-goal win to overtake the second spot in group B from the Swedish team.
18:29
In group B, Ystads will play Valur at home in a match in which Icelandic team needs a three-goal win in Sweden to overtake the second spot from Ystads. In case Valur fails to come up with a three-goal win, they will have to wait for the game between FTC and Flensburg (20.45 CET) to find out whether they are going to finish the group stage in third or fourth place.
Finally, in group D, fourth-positioned Skjern will welcome Balatonfüredi in what will be the last EHF European League match for the Hungarians this season.
18:27
We've got no time to waste with four games coming up from 18:45!
In a group A derby in Germany, Göppingen will look for an eight-goal win over current group leaders Montpellier that would help them overtake the top spot in the group from the French team.
On the other hand, third-placed Kadetten Schaffhausen will put an end to the EHF European League group stage hosting Tatran Presov.
18:25 FULL TIME
FEJER B.A.L-VESZPREM - SL BENFICA 26:35
A comfortable nine-goal win in the end for the reigning EHF European League champions SL Benfica. After losses to Kadetten Schaffhausen and Göppingen in the last two rounds, Portuguese side has this way managed to finish the group stage on a high note. Petar Djordjic led them in this one with seven while Janos Stranigg scored just as much for the hosts. With this loss, it is now clear that Fejer B.A.L-Veszprem will finish the group stage on sixth position in group A.
And here is the final look at the statistics!
18:17
With only five minutes to go in this one, Petar Djordjic scores his seventh of the day, that way catching up Janos Stranigg who has also scored seven so far. Benfica leading 25:31 at the moment.
18:07
Benfica is entering the final 15 minutes of the game with a four-goal advantage over the home team. Sergey Hernandez Ferrer is doing a great job between posts in the second, while Petar Djordjic runs the offense along with Ander Izquierdo Labayen. This one seems to be slipping away from Fejer B.A.L-Veszprem.
18:01
Leading the way offensively today for Fejer B.A.L-Veszprem - it's Janos Stranigg.
János Stranigg making sure he doesn't waste any opportunity to impress us with his powerful shots 🚀
— EHF European League (@ehfel_official) February 28, 2023
How many more goals will he score today: ___? 🔮#ehfel pic.twitter.com/mfbsSzIJZ5
17:53
Petar Djordjic starts the second half well as Benfica opens the gap to five. Djordjic now has four, same as Bingo, while Grigoras still has five.
17:45
HALF-TIME: @modalidadesslb put pressure 💥 on hosts Fejer B.A.L-Veszprem and are three goals ahead after the first 30 minutes (17:14) ⌛
— EHF European League (@ehfel_official) February 28, 2023
🏆 Who will snatch a win in the last round of the group phase?
📲 Stay tuned on https://t.co/AK2CFJBGE2 | #ehfel pic.twitter.com/rS1E1mkGXj
17:35 HALF TIME
FEJER B.A.L-VESZPREM - SL BENFICA 14:17
Guests have managed to find a way to finish the first half strong widening the gap to three goals. Demis Cosmin Grigoras (5) and Arnaud Bingo (4) are running the show offensively for Benfica while Gustavo Capdeville already has seven saves. On the other side, six goals for Janos Stranigg.
17:30
With only two more minutes to go in the first, Benfica takes over the lead at 14:15 after trailing throughout the bigger part of the first half.
17:23
Gustavo Capdeville shining early for the guests from Portugal.
A promising start for @modalidadesslb's goalkeeper Gustavo Capdeville, who manages two wonderful saves 👏#ehfel pic.twitter.com/VzXIERFEmS
— EHF European League (@ehfel_official) February 28, 2023
17:18
Janos Stranigg scores his fifth of the day as the hosts widen the gap to two goals (12:10) for the first time today. Benfica doesn't seem to have a problem with attack as Demis Cosmin Grigoras runs the show with five, but they'll have to find a way to stop Hungarians defensively if they want to finish the group stage with a win.
17:12
Red-hot Janos Stranigg keeps Fejer B.A.L-Veszprem in front (6:5) scoring four goals in only ten minutes.
17:06
Janos Stranigg (3 goals) and Carlos Martins (2) starting the day off well for their respective teams in the opening five minutes of the encounter. Hosts lead 4:3.
17:00
The first match of this final group stage day in the EHF European League is underway! The hosts will have the first possession in Veszprem, Hungary against the reigning EHF European League champions!
16:50
Welcome to the live blog coverage of the EHF European League final group stage round. We've got only ten minutes left until the first clash of the day with Fejer B.A.L-Veszprem welcoming Benfica.
The situation is already sealed for both teams - Benfica will finish fourth in group A, and Hungarians will end the EHF European League season in the group stage. Despite of that, reigning EHF European League champions will surely be looking to finish the group stage on a high note in Hungary against hosts who will definitely be highly-motivated against such a team.
16:25
At the sharp end of the season some teams are missing a few people through illness or injury - SG Flensburg-Handewitt announced yesterday that goalkeeper Kevin Møller needs an operation on his knee; FTC and Tatran Presov are also missing players, among others.
Yet fighting spirit is high still. Here's a few quotes ahead of the matches:
Jacobo Cuétara, Bidasoa Irun head coach: “We always have to think about winning every game, being better and finishing as high up the table as possible, but we know that they are a difficult opponent. With our fans
we'll see if we can beat Skanderborg-Aarhus."
FTC right wing Bence Imre: "It won’t be an easy task against Flensburg, they already won the group, but I’m sure they will want to win. There is no such thing as a first or second line for them, both are very strong, so we are concentrating on our game, we will do our best, and hope that the result turns out well."
Hannes Jón Jónsson, Alpla HC Hard coach: “In our 14th and last game in the EHF European League we want to say a proper goodbye by showing a good performance. It was an incredibly valuable experience for all of us and I'm sure everyone will benefit greatly from it. What is more, we would like to confirm that the ALPLA HC Hard and thus, Handball Austria belong in this competition. Despite the clear defeat in the first leg, we're going 'all in' tomorrow. Anything is possible in our arena and with our fans behind us.”
Francisco Costa, centre back, Sporting CP: "To get that first place of the group is one of our goals for the season, in a very balanced group. We know we're going to face a very strong team. It was a very difficult match for us, last November, when we met them. We have a had a few very intense matches in the last few weeks, but we need to overcame the fact that we feel a bit tired, I'm sure our mind and desire to win will help us to forget the pain. For us, the chance of qualifying in first is a prize for what we have been doing all season. It's going to be a special match, here, at home, with our supporters."
15:50
One player who is looking forward to tonight's game in Pelister is line player Zharko Peshevski. Peshevski played for Motor for a year and now faces his old team in a crunch match to decide the last Last 16 ticket in the group. Pelister won the reverse fixture, but Peshevski says Pelister are not underestimating Motor's strong squad. Read more from him here .
