Close games mark last stop on road to Mannheim

SC Magdeburg brought home a six-goal advantage from their visit to IFK Kristianstad in Sweden last week. Otherwise, the EHF European League Men quarter-finals look all very open ahead of the decisive second leg on Tuesday.

Rhein-Neckar Löwen, the hosts of the inaugural EHF FINALS, need to overcome a one-goal deficit against Chekhovskie medvedi to make it to their home tournament in Mannheim on 22/23 May.

Elsewhere, Füchse Berlin start three goals behind when they host Montpellier HB, while ORLEN Wisla Plock are in the exact same situation when they take on GOG in Poland.

QUARTER-FINAL, SECOND LEG:

Rhein-Neckar Löwen (GER) vs Chekhovskie medvedi (RUS)
Tuesday 20 April, 18:45 CEST, live on EHFTV

• Chekhov won the first leg 33:32 but could have gained a bigger advantage as they led 33:29 near the end of the match
• right back Alexander Kotov with 13 goals and goalkeeper Dmitry Pavlenko with 14 saves were the outstanding players of the first leg
• Löwen will host the EHF FINALS, regardless if they qualify or not; Löwen were part of the inaugural EHF Cup Finals in 2013 - and won the trophy
• assistant coach Claus Gärtner will replace Martin Schwalb as head coach of Löwen next season; Bergischer HC coach Sebastian Hinze will take over in 2022
• Medvedi beat Akbuzat in the main round of the Russian Superleague, Löwen defeated Hannover in the German Bundesliga

SC Magdeburg (GER) vs IFK Kristianstad (SWE)
Tuesday 20 April, 18:45 CEST, live on EHFTV

• Kristianstad face an uphill task to make it to the EHF FINALS after losing the first leg at home 34:28
• Kristianstad have lost all three matches against German teams this season, following two defeats against Füchse in the group phase
• Magdeburg have not lost an international home match since losing to Saint-Raphaël at the EHF Cup Finals they hosted in 2018
• Magdeburg’s top scorer Ómar Ingi Magnusson netted 12 times in the first leg to join Kristianstad’s Adam Nyfjäll on 72 goals for the season
• Magdeburg beat Melsungen to rank fourth in the Bundesliga; Kristianstad also lost their second match against Skövde in the best-of-five semi-final of the Swedish league

Füchse Berlin (GER) vs Montpellier HB (FRA)
Tuesday 20 April, 20:45 CEST, live on EHFTV

• Montpellier won the first leg at home last week, 32:29
• Füchse lost only one of seven home matches against French teams in the Berlin-based club's European history: in the EHF Cup against Saint-Raphaël
• Montpellier have not won in their last eight matches in Germany, since defeating THW Kiel 24:23 in 2011
• the last time Montpellier played in the Max-Schmeling-Halle in Berlin was at the EHF Cup Finals in 2014, when they reached the final
• both teams lost in their domestic league last week, Montpellier at PSG (31:28) and Füchse in Wetzlar (29:27)

ORLEN Wisla Plock (POL) vs GOG (DEN)
Tuesday 20 April, 20:45 CEST, live on EHFTV

• GOG have a three-goal advantage following their 30:27 home win in the first leg last week
• GOG left wing Emil Jakobsen scored eight times last week and passed the 100-goal mark for the season, raising his tally to 107
• Plock won four of their six home matches this season, but lost the last two, against Chekhov (group phase) and Sporting (Last 16)
• GOG won three away games this season, including at CSKA in Moscow in the Last 16 after they had also won the home leg
• both teams had domestic success last week: Plock took the points against Kalisz (30:25), GOG defeated SonderjyskE (36:27)