Before throw-off, both teams knew what their fate would be. After Barça defeated Flensburg earlier tonight, Paris would only finish third in the group, while Veszprem could not hope to move up, having secured fourth spot.
That does not mean that the two teams played a friendly game, far from it. Paris and Veszprem played an amazing game that lived up to its status as the last Match of the Week in the group phase.
All attack and without ever calculating, the Hungarian side took the lead and even managed to hold off a Paris come back in the second half, before Yahia Omar scored the winning goal.
GROUP B :
Paris Saint-Germain HB (FRA) vs Telekom Veszprem (HUN) 39:40 (19:20)
- under pinned by an impressive performance from goalkeeper Rodrigo Corrales, who stopped nine shots in the first half, Veszprem took a four-goal advantage into the second part of the first half
- Nikola Karabatic decided he was having none of it though, and after powering Paris into quick plays, he drove hosts to come back within one point at half-time
- the second period was a fierce display of thriling handball, with both teams trading goals
- it was down to Yahia Omar to give Veszprem the win, and he scored on the buzzer
- Veszprem’s Rasmus Lauge Schmidt was elected Player of the Game, after scoring seven goals
- Barça finish the group phase third in the group, three points ahead of Veszprem, who finish fourth
- in the Last 16, Paris will play against Elverum, while Veszprem will face Vardar Skopje
Rodrigo Corrales, a stunning comeback in his former home
After leaving Paris in 2020, the Spanish goalkeeper had not returned to his former club with his new team Veszprem, but tonight he did, and he did it in style.
His 16 saves were crucial, even though his efficiency does not say so. In both halves, he was the one keeping the visitors ahead. Rasmus Lauge won the Player of the Match award, but it could well have been given to him.
First of all, I want to congratulate my team for this great match. It was an amazing match. I would like to give also a lot of respect to Paris. It was a very tough game, it went very fast and it was so difficult to control. But we played a very good match, I think, and I’m very satisfied by our performance tonight. The points mean nothing in the group standing, but it means a lot for us because it always special to win in Paris.
