Polish-French clashes in round 5; Dinamo and Zagreb await points

In group A, Füchse Berlin aim to extend their series of victories against Kolstad Håndball to remain at the top of the group. After three consecutive defeats, Industria Kielce hope to turn the page against HBC Nantes, as well as Sporting Clube de Portugal in the Match of the Week against One Veszprém HC. Aalborg Håndbold host Dinamo Bucuresti, as the Romanian side is still in search of points this season.

In group B, leaders SC Magdeburg will try to make it five wins in a row during a tough trip to OTP Bank - PICK Szeged, while Barça travel to HC Eurofarm Pelister aiming to catch up with leaders SCM. Everything seems possible in the clash between Orlen Wisla Plock and Paris Saint-Germain, while HC Zagreb are looking for their first points as they host GOG.

GROUP A

Aalborg Håndbold (DEN) vs Dinamo Bucuresti (ROU)

Wednesday 15 October, 18:45 CEST, live on EHFTV
H2H: 0-1-1
Last match: Dinamo Bucuresti vs Aalborg Handball, 5 March 2016 (28:25 (17:12))

• thanks to seven goals by Thomas Arnoldsen, Aalborg Håndbold took an easy 35:26 win at Kolstad in round 4, when Sander Sagosen made his international comeback
• with six points on their account, the Danish champions are second in the group with the same number of points as Veszprém, while Dinamo Bucuresti are at the bottom of the table, still waiting for their first point
• the Romanian champions were extremely unlucky, having lost 31:30 at Berlin due to a penalty goal at the final buzzer, after being constantly ahead most of the second half
• it is the first duel ever of the two sides in the EHF Champions League, their only previous encounters were in the EHF Cup 2015/16, when Dinamo stayed unbeaten with a draw and a win
• Arnoldsen is the current top scorer of Aalborg with 22 goals, while Haniel Langaro netted 18 times for Dinamo
• Dinamo won the Bucharest derby against CSM (35:17), while Aalborg won 36:27 against Grinsted to top the Danish league with seven wins from the same number of matches

Industria Kielce (POL) vs HBC Nantes (FRA)

Wednesday 15 October, 20:45 CEST, live on EHFTV
H2H: 3-1-2
Last match: Industria Kielce vs HBC Nantes, 26 February 2025 (28:28 (14:12))

• despite a strong second half and an overall of eight goals by Piotr Jarosiewicz, Industria Kielce lost the MOTW at Veszprém last week, 35:33 – their third straight defeat after the opening win against Kolstad
• HBC Nantes had a different path – after losing the first two group matches, they won decisively against Kolstad and in Lisbon; Ayoub Abdi scored 11 times in the statement win against Sporting, as the final result was 39:28 in favour of the French side after leading 23:11 at half-time
• in the previous season, Nantes remained unbeaten against Kielce, with a 23:20 at home and a 28:28 at Poland
• the top scorers of both sides – Noam Leopold (Nantes) and Jarosiewicz (Kielce) – are equal on 19 strikes
• both teams boosted their confidence in their domestic leagues on Sunday: Kielce with a 45:24 at Lubin, while Nantes took a clear 38:31 win at Nimes

MOTW: Sporting Clube de Portugal (POR) vs One Veszprém HC (HUN)

Thursday 16 October, 20:45 CEST, live on EHFTV
H2H: 1-0-3
Last match: One Veszprém HC vs Sporting CP, 20 February 2025 (33:32 (16:17))

• the 39:28 loss against Nantes last week was a shock for Sporting and their second straight defeat after losing 35:30 at Aalborg
• One Veszprém HC will have to be careful, as they took a clear defeat last season in Lisbon, 39:30
• on the other hand, Veszprém won the last three consecutive matches, against Nantes and Kielce on home ground and at Bucharest, to rank second, two points below Berlin and equal with Aalborg
• Veszprém’s Nedim Remili, who was the top scorer and Player of the Match against Kielce, stands out in the Hungarian side’s squad with 30 strikes, sixth ranked in the overall scorers list; the Costa brothers Francisco (26 goals) and Martim (20 goals) are Sporting’s best shooters
• Sporting remain on top of the Portuguese league with the 45:28 against Gaia, their seventh victory in the same number of matches, while the 36:28 against Gyongiosi was Veszprém’s fifth win in the Hungarian league

STAT OF THE MATCH (by Julian Rux): Overall, Sporting Clube de Portugal's defence has not been quite up to expectations this season. Despite this, they have caused fewer penalty shots than any other team, with only 2.5 per 50 possessions. The probability that they will be able to defend their position this week is also quite high, as One Veszprém HC, their opponents in the Match of the Week, have received just 2.9 penalty shots per 50 possessions, fewer than any other team.

Füchse Berlin (GER) vs Kolstad Håndball (NOR)

Thursday 16 October, 20:45 CEST, live on EHFTV
H2H: no previous encounters in European competitions

• Füchse Berlin are the only team in group A with the optimum of eight points after four matches, and they grabbed a lucky win against Bucuresti in round 4 (31:30)
• Kolstad took their only win so far against Dinamo, and their most recent defeat was a 35:26 loss at home against Aalborg, sitting on two points and seventh in the standings
• it is the first duel of both sides in any competition and it will be special for Berlin’s Norwegian new arrival Tobias Grøndahl, who scored the winning strike from a penalty shot at the final buzzer against Dinamo
• last season’s overall top scorer of the competition, Berlin’s Dane Mathias Gidsel, is again the current number one with 42 goals, including 11 against Dinamo; Kolstad’s most successful scorer is Adrian Aalberg with 15 strikes
• Füchse showed their masterclass in attack by winning 42:27 in the German league against Minden, while Kolstad took a 42:30 victory at Arendal

GROUP B

OTP Bank - PICK Szeged (HUN) vs SC Magdeburg (GER)

Wednesday 15 October, 18:45 CEST, live on EHFTV
H2H: 1-0-3
Last match: SC Magdeburg vs OTP Bank - PICK Szeged, 5 March 2025 (31:24 (13:13))

• after four rounds, Magdeburg are the sole leaders of the group with the maximum of eight points, while Szeged are fourth with four points
• last week, Magdeburg took the points in GOG (39:30), with Ómar Ingi Magnusson scoring 11 goals
• despite Mario Sostaric scoring eight times, Szeged lost away in round 4 against Barça (31:28)
• Magdeburg’s Ómar Ingi Magnusson is the current second-best scorer in the competition with 34 goals, while Szeged’s Mario Sostaric has scored just one goal less
• the two sides played four times against each other in European competitions, with Szeged only winning once, in the 2024/25 group phase
• both teams took the points in their respective domestic confrontations last weekend: Szeged against Szigetszentmiklosi (28:21) and Magdeburg against Bergischer (39:30)

Orlen Wisla Plock (POL) vs Paris Saint-Germain (FRA)

Wednesday 15 October, 18:45 CEST, live on EHFTV
H2H: 1-0-9
Last match: Paris Saint-Germain Handball vs Orlen Wisla Plock, 13 February 2025 (28:31 (15:14))

• Plock are currently second in group B with six points, while Paris are fifth, with four points
• in round 4, Plock secured their third win of the season against Pelister (36:25), with Melvyn Richardson scoring eight goals
• Paris struggled to beat Zagreb, but finally managed to take a 35:32 victory, with Ferran Sole Sala scoring 10 times
• Plock’s Melvyn Richardson is the current fourth-best scorer of the competition with 32 goals, while Paris’ Elohim Prandi features in the top 10 with 26 strikes
• the two teams played 10 times against each other in European competitions, with Plock only winning once, in their last encounter in the 2024/25 group phase
• while Plock did not have any domestic games on their schedule last weekend, Paris beat Sélestat 36:28 in the French league

HC Eurofarm Pelister (MKD) vs Barça (ESP)

Wednesday 15 October, 20:45 CEST, live on EHFTV
H2H: no previous encounters in European competitions

• before round 5, Barça are third in the group with six points and Pelister stand on seventh place with two points
• last Wednesday, Pelister suffered a tough defeat in Plock (36:25), despite Dejan Manaskov netting seven times
• Barça won their second home game of the season last week, against Szeged (31:28), thanks to Ian Barrufet’s six goals
• the two teams have never played against each other in European competitions
• after four rounds, Pelister’s Dejan Manaskov is the seventh-best scorer in the competition, with 29 goals, while Aleix Gómez has scored 18 times for Barça
• Pelister defeated Prolet Skopje in the North Macedonian league (26:24) while Barça won at Granollers (35:28)

HC Zagreb (CRO) vs GOG (DEN)

Thursday 16 October, 18:45 CEST, live on EHFTV
H2H: 1-1-2
Last match: GOG vs HC PPD Zagreb, 1 March 2023 (33:29 (20:12))

• Zagreb are currently at the bottom of the group with no points, while GOG are sixth with two points
• Zagreb suffered their fourth straight defeat in the EHF Champions League last Thursday in Paris (35:32), even though Luka Lovre Klarica and Ihar Bialiauski scored nine each
• GOG also lost in round 4, 39:30 at home against SC Magdeburg, despite Frederik Bjerre netting nine times
• GOG’s Bjerre is the fifth-best scorer overall with 31 goals, while Zagreb’s Luka Lovre Klarica has netted 23 times
• the two sides played four times against each other in European competitions, with GOG winning twice, Zagreb once and one game ending in a draw
• Zagreb took the points against Varazdin in the Croatian league on Saturday (40:27), while GOG drew at Ribe-Esbjerg (24:24)

Photos © Jerzy Stankowski (main), Lars Rune Skaug, Peka Roland, Aleksandar Kotevski, Lau Nielsen (in-text)