The race for quarter-final tickets is on
The top two teams in group A, CSM Bucuresti and Vipers Kristiansand, will seal their quarter-finals berths if they win this weekend, with crucial ties being decisive in the group’s standings. Group B will also witness the outcome of an important match between the two leading teams, Metz Handball and Györi Audi ETO KC as they keep an eye on Rapid Bucuresti's and Team Esbjerg's results ahead of the two last rounds of the group phase.
The top games are now lined up week after week. Bucharest is the hottest contender for the title this year for me. The point won in the first leg and the good performance in Kristiansand should give us a tailwind. We put everything into this highlight and want to overthrow the big favourites.
Krim Mercator Ljubljana (SLO) vs DHK Banik Most (CZE)
Sunday, 21 January, 14:00 CET, live on EHFTV
- the Czech side is only playing for pride in the last three matches of the season, as they have no possibility of reaching a play-offs place, after losing all the 11 matches played so far
- Krim have been in fine form on their home court in the last matches, winning two of the last three games, facing a must-win situation as they are one point behind Brest in the battle for the sixth place, the last one to ensure a play-offs berth
- Most have now lost 14 games in a row in the competition, only two games shy of the record losing streak in the EHF Champions League Women, set by Krim between October 2014 and September 2016
- the Czech side has conceded at least 77 more goals than any other team in the competition in the first 11 matches, as their average number of goals conceded per game is a staggering 41.1 goals
- in the first match between the two teams this season, Krim secured a 42:29 win, beating their record of the number of goals scored in a single match, their top performance in 295 matches played in the top European competition
Brest Bretagne Handball (FRA) vs FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria (HUN)
Sunday, 21 January, 14:00 CET, live on EHFTV
- provided they win and score at least 22 goals, FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria will seal a play-offs spot for the third year in a row, as they would hold a four-point advantage over Brest and the tiebreaker against the French side
- FTC’s right back Katrin Klujber has been one of the most reliable goal scorers in this season, putting 78 goals past FTC’s opponents, with four games finishing in double digits
- while their attack might be problematic, Brest’s defence kept their heads high this season, with the fourth-lowest number of goals conceded in the competition, 291, or an average of 26.4 conceded goals per game
- this will be Brest’s 70th game in their history in the EHF Champions League Women, having an exact 50 per cent winning percentage, with 35 wins, four draws and 31 losses
- usually a dominant force on their home court, Brest have lost as many home games this season, three, as in the previous three seasons combined
GROUP B
WHC Buducnost BEMAX (MNE) vs HC Lokomotiva Zagreb (CRO)
Saturday 21 January, 16:00 CET, live on EHFTV
- Buducnost are on an excellent way to confirm the play-off spot, a win against Lokomotiva would bring them exactly that as they are in front of Kastamonu by six points
- on the other hand, the 11th defeat this season would bring Lokomotiva final elimination for Europe's top flight
- the Croatian side is the least efficient team in the competition; Lokomotiva scored only 214 goals at 48.5 per cent efficiency; Buducnost netted 77 goals more, making an average of seven more goals per game
- Montenegrin player Matea Pletikosic is the leader of the competition by the number of assists - 62 and netted 53 more goals in 11 matches played; the Croatian best scorer is right back Lara Birtic with 34 goals
- Bojana Popovic's team eye their fifth win of the season which would end their negative streak of three straight defeats; Lokomotiva were easily defeated by Györ after a draw against Kastamonu
- Lokomotiva still lead in the Croatian Championship with a most recent win over Dalmatinka Ploce by 32:21
What is basic when you play against Buducnost is the run, the return transition. They play a quick centre, quick attack, and finish their attacks quickly. To play with such a team, you must maximize your physical and mental abilities.
We know it's a big game, we know we won the first leg but we know it's going to be a completely different game. The victory is over and now if we want to win the second game we have to do the same. We are all motivated, we like to play great teams like Györ. No matter who is in front of us, we will always try to win.
We have a great desire to play a better game against Esbjerg this game. In Denmark, the match was decided after 10 minutes. Most things must be good to succeed against team as good as Esbjerg. The most important thing is to put aside respect and have faith in your own skills.
For us the game against Kastamonu is of the utmost importance. We need to win to have any chance of entering the
quarter-finals directly, but it is also necessary to win to be able to have better rivals in the hypothetical round of 16.
