EHF Champions League Women returns with heavyweight clashes in round 7
The EHF Champions League Women 2026/27 returns after a three-week break for the first of the two remaining rounds before the Women's EHF EURO 2026 in December, as the group stage reaches midway this weekend.
Sola play at a fast pace and move the ball quickly, so they will punish every mistake we make. Our finishing will be particularly important. If we perform at the right level, we have a good chance of success. The whole team believes we can win, and now we have to prove it on the court.
CSM is a tough team with a lot of great players. The last time Brest played against them was in the FINAL4, and you know what the result was. This time, we will do everything to turn the tables. It's a new season; we are going to give our maximum this weekend to make our fans happy and, above all, for ourselves.
We are expecting a difficult away game in Brest, but we are also looking forward to being able to play together again after the break and to try as a team to make the best possible result out of this upcoming double-header with them. The atmosphere in the Brest Arena is always fantastic and it's a pleasure to play there. Several players from our team have played in Brest and are looking forward to meeting that audience again.
We need to be smart and play our game well. Of course, I want to win both matches, which would mean we go into the next stage of the Champions League without having lost a single game. That would be very important for us heading into the second part of the season after the international break. But yes, I’m really excited. It’s also special because I’ll be playing in Denmark again. I expect this to be a very high-level game, and we’ll do everything we can to come away with the win.
I expect a very close and physical game against a Storhamar side who proved themselves against the best in Champions League. We have good knowledge of Storhamar (and they about us) from earlier close meetings, and I believe that the game is highly likely to be decided in the defence. So the key for us will be good defending and speed in our attack.
We are facing a very strong, cohesive team. Nykøbing’s top level is excellent. They vary their attacking play quite a bit, switching between six-on-six and seven-on-six, so we’ll face the challenge of having to adapt accordingly. We have six points after six matches, and we are extremely pleased with that. Now we have two consecutive games against Nykøbing, which will be exciting. We’re hoping to come away with points from these two encounters. That would put us in a very good position heading into the final matches in the new year.
Our focus is on continuing to develop, learning from every game and putting those lessons into practice. Facing a team of this calibre is a great challenge, but we don't want to be intimidated by our opponents. Instead, we want to embrace the challenge, focus on our own strengths and continue working on our development.
It’s their first time in [the EHF] Champions League. They are the underdogs, so they can play free. I think they played some good games in Champions League 'till now and they are really fighters. They run a lot. When their defence is good, their goalkeeper was also [in] some games really good and then they can run and score easy goals.
Podravka is playing very well this year; I believe they have taken a step forward compared to last season. In attack, Matea Šošo and Katarina Pandža are a nightmare for all their opponents. We are counting on our fans to support us in this very challenging match.
They are currently performing very well in the Champions League, so a very difficult match awaits us; we must be fully prepared and adapt effectively to their demanding, aggressive defence. Furthermore, we need to counter the individual quality they possess across various positions in their squad, so that we can hold our own and remain competitive enough to aim for a positive result.
