Battle for final rankings continues as group phase nears conclusion
Even though the four teams going through to the quarter-finals are already known, there is still a lot to be played for in round 13 of the Machineseeker EHF Champions League 2025/26, and the last two rounds will influence the teams’ path to Cologne.
This could be the chance to win the group stage on our own. We have it all in our own hands. It is a bit different to play the game now, when both teams are already through to the quarter-finals, which I think was the greatest goal for both teams. But after tree losses in a row to Berlin, we are very motivated to go for the victory at home.
We go into every game with the will to win. That will also be the case now in Aalborg, because first and second place are at stake. We won the first leg and hope to do so again. Personally, I'm looking forward to playing against Juri Knorr. We know each other very well from the national team.
We need to play effectively in attack and quickly get back into defence to avoid counterattacks. We also need to defend well. It has to be a complete performance against a team that has youth and hunger to fight for the highest goals. When we play at home, in front of our fans, we have a slightly better chance.
We expect a very difficult game, especially since it's away from home, in a very adverse environment, but we will be ready to play. We will prepare and we will fight. It will be difficult, but this team is used to giving clearly good responses.
The match against Kolstad will be a very important one for us. It is the last game we are playing at home this season, in front of our fans, and that gives us extra motivation. We really want the two points at stake and we aim to finish our home run with a solid performance that rewards the support our fans have given us throughout this season.
It will be a tough away match, we played a good match at home, but this match will be completely different. We will try to get a good defence that can help our goalkeepers and get the easy goals on the counter. Then we will see what the result will be after 60 minutes.
Veszprém is a very complete team with a huge squad. They have nothing but international players in every position. But it’s also nice to play against them, already qualified, without any pressure or inferiority complex. We are going to give our very best with the goal of taking two more points in this group stage and trying to finish as high as possible in the standings.
I’ve played against Nantes many times, and every match has been a great experience. The French team is made up of good and fast players, blessed with excellent shooting ability. As a goalkeeper, if you are having a good day, you can really enjoy matches like this. If not, though, you might be in for a lot of suffering.
A big, strong team full of experienced, quality players — [Plock] are definitely the favourites going into this one. We will surely do our absolute best and try to exploit their weaknesses. We no longer have a chance to advance, however, our goal will be to stay close and competitive for as long as possible.
We have secured the third place, but this is an opportunity to keep improving and show ambition. We are playing against a team with good players in a historic handball venue. I expect a tough match.
Team spirit is great and we don't need extra motivation to play against a giant like PSG. We work very hard and we are ready for this challenge. I hope that our fans will be with us, because we need tham for a match like this.
Securing our qualification with the home win against Szeged last week was an important step for us, especially after the strong performance and victory in Zagreb two weeks earlier. Those two results reflect the progress and consistency we’ve been building in recent weeks. Now the challenge is to maintain that positive dynamic away in North Macedonia. Pelister are always a tough opponent at home, with great support behind them, so we will need to stay focused, disciplined and ambitious.
We are currently in fourth place, and we want to keep this position. To achieve that, we need to win against GOG on Thursday evening. It will certainly be a tough battle; our opponent is a fast and dynamic team. However, experience is on our side, and in such a tight match, that can prove decisive.
We are aiming for the highest possible position, and a win in Szeged would put us in a strong spot. We face a physically strong defence so, as always for us, tempo will be the key.
This will be a completely different game from September — too much has happened for both teams since then. But it is no secret that we want to win this game; playing against Barcelona for the win in the group is fantastic. That is a privilege we have worked for, that is something we want to celebrate with our fans.
We lost by one goal at home against them and of course we want to win in Magdeburg and position ourselves as group leaders. There is nothing written yet about the quarter-final matchups as everything can happen yet in this two last weeks of the group phase, but it’s important for us to top our group.
