Veszprém, Barça clash in MOTW; Kiel aim to defend group A lead
In round 9 of the group phase this week, Telekom Veszprém HC can become the second team to secure their place in the knockout stage of the Machineseeker EHF Champions League. In the Match of the Week, Veszprém play against the team that booked their ticket already last week: Barça.
Over in group A, no team can lock up a knockout spot already this week as the top six are separated by just two points. However, THW Kiel will be eager to defend their top position when hosting Paris-Saint Germain Handball.
This match in Zagreb is a four-point match, not only getting two points but also for taking them from our opponent. We expect a great atmosphere in Zagreb and a very motivated team. They have a great defense, it will be a big challenge to find the weak points. We are in a good streak and playing good handball; we believe in our chances. The result will show us what position we are fighting for.
It is always exciting for me to play against a Norwegian team. We had a close game at home and we have seen this season that Kolstad are a tough place to play, beating both Kiel and Paris at home. We have a lot of respect for them, but we need the two points to stay in the top spots of the group.
I am looking forward to another great match, in Trondheim Spectrum in front of our wonderful spectators. Aalborg are a top team that will be very difficult to beat, but we have seen that everything is possible in the Trondheim Spectrum. We will give it our all!
Looking at the table, it's an extremely important game in this constellation. I'm really looking forward to playing against Paris with the "White Wall" behind us. PSG will certainly want revenge for the first leg, so we know what to expect.
Currently, not everything is going as we would like it to. It can be seen on the court that we have uncertainty, there is no slack in the game when we scored 35 goals in Champions League matches and even more so in the Polish league. Every athlete goes through a period like this in their career, we have to deal with it. He has to overcome this obstacle in his head. Because we haven't forgotten how to play handball. We broke our poor run in the match against Zagreb, that's definitely a plus for us. Now we have another home match and we have to win.
The Kielce team is made up of great individuals, who create a huge image of a collective game. They are led by one of the best coaches in the world. We shouldn't have any special motivation for Kielce, because in the Champions League, every game is motivation for us.
I'm looking forward to this match. Last home match in 2023 and our best shot to get our first points on the board. It will be tough, because Plock are a really good team with good players. We lost in Poland, we lost the match in the first 15 minutes, then we played goal for goal. We had some trouble with injuries in the first match and mistakes that we want to correct on Wednesday.
The match against Celje is a crucial one both for us and for the team under the command of Alem Toskic. From our side it will be a complicated encounter away from home against young but very talented players. Nonetheless, we are going there with one specific goal and that is to win.
GOG have been putting in a string of very interesting results and displays in the Machineseeker EHF Champions League. Only a FC Porto side, close to their best, will be able to win in Denmark
I am sure that it is going to be a tough game. It is always difficult to play against Barca both away and at home. Of course, in front of our fans we want to perform well and win the match. This is our goal, but I know that it will be very challenging. Barca is Barca, and they play well in this season. They only lost one match in this season, the one against us in the Palau Blaugrana. Thus, I am sure that they want to win the second game against us.
We are top of the group with Veszprém and it is a game that is very important to stay up there. But aside from the points, it's a great game. Playing in Veszprém is not easy. It is never easy to win there, although it has been done. This year they beat us at home and now we want to go there to win.
Montpellier are having a strong season and they made it difficult for us for a long time in the first leg with great support from the fans. We know what to expect and want to consolidate third place.
