Summary: Joy for Veszprém, Barça and MHB; Kielce take MOTW
The Golden Road to Cologne nears its completion as the Machineseeker EHF Champions League 2023/24 heads into the quarter-finals. On Wednesday, a rematch of last season's final in the Match of the Week between Industria Kielce and SC Magdeburg saw Kielce defeat the German side by one. The opening night of first-leg quarter-finals concluded with Montpellier taking a decisive win over THW Kiel.
On Thursday, Veszprém took a dramatic, late win against Aalborg, while Barça outplayed PSG in Paris for a huge lead before the second leg.
22:21
If someone told us at the break that Barça would take the second half 19:8, we probably would have told them they're crazy or something. PSG played a good, solid first half and nothing indiciated they would collapse in the remainder of the match.
The French side looked deflated and powerless through most of the second period and coach Gonzalez will have to analyse what went wrong. Barça showed their prowess with Mem, Richardson and Frade scoring 19 goals combined in the match, and Perez de Vargas saving 10 shots (50 per cent success rate).
The final six minutes were particularly horrific for the Parisian side as they failed to score in that period. Barça scored five, including Cikusa's goal in the final seconds into an empty net.
PSG simply went missing in the second half, they made way too many errors and couldn't contain Barça's attack anymore. In the end it's a huge eight-goal margin in favour of the Spaniards who are now heavy favourites to reach the TruckScout24 EHF FINAL4.
22:18 | FULL-TIME
PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN HB - BARÇA 22:30
22:12
Huge chance gone begging from PSG as Holm hit the post at 25:22. Barça respond with Carlsbogard's goal with less than four minutes left in this match.
22:07
PSG are fighting back, as you would expect from such a quality, star-studded team. Syprzak and Sole reduce the gap to four goals (25:21) which leads Carlos Ortega to a timeout. The home crowd are also getting more and more involved, they believe again.
22:02 | PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN HB - BARÇA 18:24
It's hard to explain what's happening to PSG. Barça are simply dominating and have a hefty six-goal lead after Richardson's sixth goal of the game. Spanish giants with their noses in front 24:18 with 11 minutes until the final buzzer.
22:00
Carlos Ortega's team did exceptionally well in the second half to come from four goals behind to four goals in front! Terrific.
Photo credit: Laurene Valroff
21:58
Half-way through the second period Barça are constantly pulling away from PSG. Cikusa's second goal means Barça lead 21:17, which takes the score in the second half to 10:4 in their favour.
21:55
PSG have gone completely off the boil and Barça are taking full advantage of it. Now Luis Frade scores to take the guests three goal to the good, 19:16.
21:50
Incredible turnaround in less than five minutes! Barça are seriously stepping it up right now and lead 17:16 after Mem's goal from fast break. That's a run of 6-1 for the 10-time CL winner. Timeout Raul Gonzalez.
21:47
The game is on in Paris, the Spaniards score three goals in quick succession to almost completely erase the deficit. It's 15:14 now after goals from Mem, Richardson and Ariño.
21:44
PSG take a four-goal lead for the first time tonight as Sole scored (15:11). French champions then had two attacks to make it +5, but failed to even further move away from Barça.
21:39
We're back for the second 30 minutes in the French capital.
21:25 | HALF-TIME
PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN HB - BARÇA 14:11
Powered by Palicka's saves early on (seven in total), PSG took control and leads by three goals at the break after Syprzak's penalty shot in the last second.
It's a tough match altogether, not so fluid and attractive. You can sense the importance of this clash, and perhaps it's hindering the players' creative sides.
Tønnesen and Syprzak scored four times for PSG, while Dika Mem is on top of Barça's scoring chart with four goals.
PSG's defensive specialist Luka Karabatic will have to take it easy in the second half as he already has two two-minute suspensions to his name.
21:17
The pace of the match slowed down a bit. PSG lead 12:10 with five minutes left in the first half.
21:13
Palicka got hit in the face with a ball, but German referees Schulze and Tönnies decided there wasn't any foul play, much to the displeasure of the legendary Thierry Omeyer in the stands.
21:10
First timeout from Carlos Ortega as PSG lead 11:8.
Barça played in the EHF CL quarter-finals 23 times before, more than any other club, so there's loads of experience and know-how embedded in the core of the club, but so far they're unable to establish themselves completely in this match.
21:06
PSG's Kamil Syprzak, competition's leading goalscorer, nets his 101th goal of the season to put PSG 8:6 in front. Later, he scored another to make it 9:6, which is PSG's biggest lead so far.
21:02
Palicka is on fire right now! Again he saves Gómez Abelló's shot from fast break, that's his fifth save of the night already. Dika Mem, however, scores from outside to narrow Barça's lead to 7:6.
20:58
Gómez Abelló fails to convert his second penalty shot. This time Palicka didn't make the save, but obviously he intimidated the Spaniard enough for him to send the ball over the goal. Tønnesen scores on the other side for PSG's lead 5:4.
20:52
After three minutes of no goals, Kent Robin Tønnesen breaks the deadlock for PSG. Later on, Palicka saves Gómez Abelló's penalty shot after Luka Karabatic's two-minute suspension. The score is now 2:2 after Carlsbogard's goal into an empty net.
20:45
PSG with the first offence in Stade Pierre de Coubertin.
20:44
PSG's preparation for this match wasn't ideal. They lost to Nantes in the French cup final 31:23, having trailed 29:16 at one point.
The Spanish giant had an easy domestic match against Sinfin, winning it 37:16.
20:41
PSG's Nikola Karabatic, who's set to retire at the end of this season, is four goals shy of 1,200 goals in EHF CL.
Photo credit: Laurene Valroff
20:40
Barça are record champions with 10 EHF CL titles, most recently in 2022. PSG are aiming for their first trophy after losing their only final so far in 2017.
Looking at their head-to-head ratio, Barça won eight out of 10 duels so far. PSG won only once, all the way back in November 2016.
20:37
Barça qualified directly for the quarter-finals having finished second in group B behind current champions Magdeburg, while PSG defeated Orlen Wisla Plock in the play-offs 64:59 on aggregate. Earlier, they finished third in group A behind Kiel and Aalborg.
20:35
In 10 minutes time, PSG and Barça begin their quest for a place in the TruckScout24 EHF FINAL4. The moment of truth begins, that’s the title of the preview article on Barça's website. We couldn’t agree more.
20:30
This was Veszprém's first and only lead in the match! Incredible. Also, what a turnaround from the Hungarian team as they trailed by six goals in the second half.
Remili with six goals and Vailupau and Elisson with five each were the most efficient at Veszprém, while four players scored four goals each for Aalborg (Arnoldsen, Antonsen, Hoxer, Vlah).
The second leg will be played on 1 May at 18:45 in Aalborg.
20:26
Let's back up a little. Hoxer scored from nine meters for Aalborg's lead in the final minute (31:30), Elisson responded from the wing to tie the score.
Aalborg then had the final 15 seconds in possession, but Hoxer turned over the ball and Fathy Omar raced into a fast break, all alone. The race was between him and the clock!
In the end, he squeezed the ball between Landin's legs, but the question was - did he make it in time? Referees from Moldavia in the end decided - he did!
The guests were furious, as they believed Fathy Omar didn't make the shot in time. There was no video replay either. A close call, for sure, but either way Veszprém head to Denmark with a single goal advantage, but also a psychological edge because of this late, late drama.
20:24 | FULL-TIME
TELEKOM VESZPRÉM HC - AALBORG HÅNDBOLD 32:31
What a dramatic finish! Incredibly, Veszprém win with a goal from Fathy Omar in literally the final second of the match!
20:19
Fathy Omar again levels the match (30:30) and we're in the final minute now. Timeout Aalborg.
20:16
Veszprém are still fighting hard for their first lead of the match. Aalborg in front 30:29 with two and a half minutes to go.
20:13
With less than five minutes left in this match, Fabregas goes to the bench for two minutes. The result is again tied after goals from Hansen and Fabregas (28:28).
20:11 | TELEKOM VESZPRÉM HC - AALBORG HÅNDBOLD 27:27
And here it is, Veszprém are level! A turnover from Aalborg and Casado scores in an empty net, 27:27.
20:09
Again Landin with the heroics for Aalborg! His third save of the half and seventh in total keeps Aalborg with the slimmest of leads. That was the third straight Veszprém's failed chance to tie the match. Wili it come back to haunt them?
Final eight minutes of the game, Aalborg now lead 27:25.
Meanwhile, Jensen had a few phenomenal saves.
20:04
Veszprém fans are going crazy right now as Remili scores from fast break. Aalborg's lead is cut to a single goal (24:23)! This is much more like it from the Hungarian champions and Aalborg will have to step it up towards the end of the match if they want to leave Veszprém Arena with an advantage.
Momir Ilic benched Corrales, who hasn't saved anything in the second half, and put Mike Jensen on goal.
20:00
Goals are now coming in often and fast, both ways. Aalborg netted twice in a row (23:19), then Veszprém reacted in the same fashion, so again it's only +2 in favour of the CL 2021 finalist.
19:56 | TELEKOM VESZPRÉM HC - AALBORG HÅNDBOLD 19:21
Remili animates the home crowd after he finds a way through Landin to completely open up this game! Not so long ago Aalborg were six goals in front, but now the difference is only two goals - 21:19. Timeout Madsen with 10 minutes gone in the second half.
19:53
Landin's brilliance is again on show. The big Dane saves Vailupau's penalty shot, but he can't deny Elisson who cuts Aalborg's lead to four goals now (21:17).
19:48
The difference is again six goals after Mads Hoxer's fast break goal (19:13).
It's interesting to see Veszprém's absent player Kentin Mahé in the stands, among the fiery Hungarian fans, supporting his teammates on the court.
19:43
Second half is under way in Veszprém. It's five on five until suspended players (Bjørnsen, Descat) return.
19:40
It wasn't an easy first half for this - I assume - Veszprém fan.
19:30
Aleks Vlah with four goals was the Aalborg's top scorer. Arnoldsen, Hoxer, Antonsen and Hansen scored twice each. Remili and Vailupau led the way for Veszprém with six goals between them (both with three).
19:28
Both teams will resume the play without one player. Bjørnsen received a two minute suspension in the penultimate minute of the first half, while Descat will also start the second period from the bench after a video replay which showed he hit Arnoldsen in the face before the time ran out.
19:26 | HALF-TIME
TELEKOM VESZPRÉM HC - AALBORG HÅNDBOLD 12:17
Aalborg probably couldn't have wished for a better first half. They hold a strong lead after an excellent start powered by their goalkeeper Landin. His counterpart Corrales ended the first half with more saves (7-4), but Landin's came in more important moments.
Aalborg's defence was just too solid for Veszprém's pretty slow and inefficient attack. The four-time CL finalists will need to speed it up after the break. The Danes controlled the result and even had a six-goal advantage twice (16:10, 17:11) before Vailupau netted the final goal of the first period.
19:16
Mikkel Hansen again come off the bench to convert the penalty shot and then Møllgaard Jensen scores to put Aalborg five goals to the good (15:10).
19:12
Slovenian international Aleks Vlah is really enjoying himself out there. He's just scored his fourth goal of the match. Aalborg recovered well after the timeout and they now lead 12:8.
19:07
Considering Landin's excellent performance so far, Veszprém need help from their own goalkeeper as well. Corrales brings his save tally to four before Sandell, former Aalborg's player, scores.
Descat follows up to narrow the hosts' gap to 10:8. Veszprém score three goals in succession after Arnoldsen's two-minute suspension. Timeout Stefan Madsen.
19:00
Nedim Remili, Veszprém's top scorer this season, nets three times in a row to help Veszprém find their way in this match. Vlah and Arnoldsen respond and then Fabregas receives a two-minute suspension. Aalborg lead 8:4 with 13 minutes gone.
18:57 | TELEKOM VESZPRÉM HC - AALBORG HÅNDBOLD 1:6
Elderaa makes a mistake, and Arnoldsen punishes Veszprém to make it 6:1 already! Terrific start from Aalborg.
18:55
Landin is turning out to be Descat's nightmare right now. Aalborg's goalkeeper saved the Frenchman's third shot as well! Early trouble for Veszprém as they trail 5:1 after eight minutes of play. Mikkel Hansen came from the bench to convert the penalty shot and now Veszprém's head coach Momir Ilic calls for timeout.
18:51
Landin has already settled in nicely, saving both of Descat's shots, including a penalty shot. Vlah and Hald Jensen opened up the scoring for Aalborg before Fathy Omar scored Veszprém's first goal to make it 1:2.
18:45
OK, enough talking - let's play! First offence for Aalborg. Golden Road to Cologne resumes.
18:39
This will be the seventh time Veszprém and Aalborg stand on opposite sides of each other. So far they've split those matches, with both winning three times. Two years ago Veszprém came out victorious 71:66 on aggregate in the quarter-finals.
18:35
Lovely to see two legends of the game together here, Mikkel Hansen from Aalborg and László Nagy, the former Veszprém player and the current sporting director of that team.
The two of them were actually teammates in Barça from 2008 to 2010.
Photo credit: Roland Peka
18:30
Veszprém were offensively the most dominant team in the group phase with 489 goals in 14 matches. In comparison, Aalborg scored 430.
However, the Danes were much tighter in defence, conceding only 382 goals as opposed to 436 by Veszprém.
It should be a cracking encounter between two teams that aren't used to losing recently. Veszprém recorded their previous loss (in all competitions) on 7 March against Magdeburg, and Aalborg on 18 February against GOG in the domestic championship.
18:20
Who are Aalborg's key players, who has more possessions per game (Veszprém or Aalborg), who is more efficient from fast throw-offs, and much more, find out in Manel Cirac's analysis right here:
21:28 HALF-TIME | MONTPELLIER VS THW KIEL 20:16
Montpellier stay clear in control at the break, with a four-goal cushion in their favour. The standout individual remains Remi Desbonnet, with eight saves in MHB's goal.
The high-scoring match means both sides have been rotating extensively, and the evidence is there with 16 players having contributed on the score board, led by MHB wing Yanis Lenne and Kiel back Eric Johansson with five apiece.
21:20 26th MINUTE | MONTPELLIER VS THW KIEL 17:13
Into the final five minutes of the opening half with Montpellier steady in front. This is a special match for the French side — an impossibly special one, as it is the last home Champions League game for coach Patrice Canayer, who has led the team for 30 years. But of course, the coach hopes the season will continue for a while after this match...
21:13 20th MINUTE | MONTPELLIER VS THW KIEL 14:10
Montpellier are so far capitalising on the home court spectacularly, holding their clear edge over Kiel with a strong showing all round and Remi Desbonnet standing out in goal. Desbonnet now counts seven saves at a rate of 38.89 per cent.
Kiel are back on the Champions League court after a break following the group phase, as they progressed straight to this stage as winners of group A. Montpellier made it to this stage after winning an exciting play-off tie against Zagreb, which saw the first leg end in a draw before the French team pulled off a big win on their own court to secure the quarter-final place.
21:06 15th MINUTE | MONTPELLIER VS THW KIEL 11:8
We hit the end of the first quarter in Montpellier with the home side having recorded a huge run of 10:4 to completely turn the match on its head. Montpellier's wings are a nightmare for Kiel, with Yanis Lenne now counting five goals and Lucas Pellas on three.
Kiel make a change in goal, bringing in Tomas Mrkva for Samir Bellahcene, after the latter recorded one save. At Montpellier's end, Remi Desbonnet has stopped five.
20:53 6th MINUTE | MONTPELLIER VS THW KIEL 2:4
Past the five-minute mark in France, where Kiel have a narrow lead. Overall, this is the 11th clash between MHB and Kiel, with Montpellier having won only twice against the German side, most recently in 2021.
Kiel goalkeeper Samir Bellahcene is facing his former club plus many of his France teammates. The goalkeeper was key for France's EHF EURO 2024 win in January.
20:48 2ND MINUTE | MONTPELLIER VS THW KIEL 1:0
The second first-leg quarter-final of the night begins, with Montpellier right wing Yanis Lenne first on the board.
20:42
On to the next first-leg quarter-final: Montpellier vs THW Kiel! Just three minutes until throw-off in tonight's second clash. Join us now on EHFTV.
20:37
The MOTW defeat is Magdeburg's first in the Champions League since September, when they lost to Barça by 12 goals in Spain. Magdeburg had opened their season with a defeat on home turf, losing to Veszprém.
But since the loss to Barça, Magdeburg have not dropped a point in the top flight. They reversed the results against mighty Barça and Veszprém at the end of the group phase, beating the Spanish side by one in Germany and Veszprém by two in Hungary.
20:32
Eight goals and a crucial role for Kielce earn Alex Dujshebaev the Player of the Match award.
Now we have a long 60 minutes in Magdeburg. OK, of course, if you play against as strong as SCM is, you need every player. For me, problematic is the absence of Tomasz Gębala. Today, we learned a lot what we must do better in Magdeburg. Both teams want to get rest and next week will be another great fight.
In Kielce, it was just the first part of the game. I mean, everything can happen. One goal difference is not what we would like to have but Kielce at home is pretty strong. We will analyse what we did wrong and fix it next week.
19:25 HALF-TIME | KIELCE VS MAGDEBURG 14:13
Kielce reclaim a narrow lead before the break but cannot celebrate the end of the half too much, as they endured a period of seven minutes without a goal, during which Magdeburg brought the game to a fully equal contest.
19:19 27th MINUTE | KIELCE VS MAGDEBURG 12:12
A penalty scored by Tim Hornke brings Magdeburg within one goal for the first time since the eighth minute, 12:11. Then a save from Sergey Hernandez and a breakthrough shot from Gisli Kristjansson level the game for the first time since 1:1.
19:14 23rd MINUTE | KIELCE VS MAGDEBURG 12:9
Into the last 10 minutes of the first half, which means roughly 1/6 of the way through this quarter-final tie. While it's still early, Kielce are looking great to take the win from this encounter — but even a victory will be far from enough to give them security, with the aggregate winners to progress to the TruckScout24 EHF FINAL4. The Polish team will be looking to not only win the home leg, but take the biggest possible difference to Germany for the return fixture.
Alex Dujshebaev has contributed three of Kielce's last five goals, living up to his important role in offence for the side and leading the individual scoring race.
19:06 16th MINUTE | KIELCE VS MAGDEBURG 7:5
15 minutes gone in the first quarter-final and Kielce are holding steady in front. Andreas Wolff's saves have slowed but the keeper still holds a rate near 40 per cent. His dominance in the battle between the posts is a key factor, as Sergey Hernandez has yet to add another to his important stop earlier that led to Magdeburg's first goal.
19:00 12th MINUTE | KIELCE VS MAGDEBURG 6:3
A direct red card for Dylan Nahi in the 10th minute is a blow for Kielce. The Frenchmen is served the card after a hit to Gisli Kristjansson's face.
Magdeburg capitalise on the numerical superiority and add a couple more goals but Kielce reopen the gap quickly once back to full strength.
18:55 9th MINUTE | KIELCE VS MAGDEBURG 3:1
Kielce could not have hoped for a better start to the home leg of the quarter-final, and Andreas Wolff is delivering just as he needs to if the Polish team are to take this tie. The German keeper has saved three out of four shots faced. He has stopped two penalties — one penalty just saved against Omar Ingi Magnusson, and the other a post hit, so not technically a save, but the psychological battle won.
Magnusson has now taken three shots against Wolff and missed all of them, making it seem the goalkeeper is very much in Magnusson's head.
18:52 7th MINUTE | KIELCE VS MAGDEBURG 1:1
A save from Magdeburg keeper Sergey Hernandez leads to the defending title holder's first goal on a counter attack, courtesy of line player Magnus Saugstrup.
18:49 4th MINUTE | KIELCE VS MAGDEBURG 1:0
A lot of action outside the goal area and not much within it so far, with only two shots taken in the opening first-leg quarter-final — one a success from Kielce back Igor Karacic, and one a save from the Polish side's goalkeeper Andreas Wolff.
Such a score at such a point does not mean much, except that Wolff is off to a strong start that can certainly hint at what is to come through the rest of the game.
18:45 1ST MINUTE | KIELCE VS MAGDEBURG 0:0
Starting whistle and we are underway with the quarter-finals!
18:37
Here we go! The stream is up and running on EHFTV and it's time to join us for the MOTW. Throw-off in exactly eight minutes.
18:33
One last pre-MOTW read for you — the recently published This is me of Gisli Kristjansson, which tells the more personal side of his journey to the title last season and the EHF FINAL4 MVP trophy.
I happen to be the writer behind this one, and feel lucky to get to tell the story because it was just so wild. A broken bone in the foot in the quarter-final stage that miraculously healed in time for the EHF FINAL4, a dislocated shoulder in the semi-final and then somehow managing to play the final — and not just play it, but have such a big role. It's a classic and memorable story that only sport can write, and well worth a read. Find it below!
The Magdeburg team has changed a bit compared to the final in June last year. I think they are even stronger. We have had very difficult moments this season, but now is the most important period. We endured a time when we didn't have such good results, when we had a lot of injuries, but now we are in good shape and ready to fight.
