Rematch of the final in MOTW; former coaches duel in Veszprém

GROUP A

Paris Saint-Germain Handball (FRA) vs Fredericia Håndbold Klub (DEN)
Wednesday 9 October, 20:45 CEST, live on EHFTV

• Paris took a lucky 24:23 win at Plock in the previous round to be on four points after three matches, while debutants Fredericia still wait for their first-ever point
• line player Kamil Syprzak, who was the top scorer of the Machineseeker EHF Champions League 2023/24 season, is currently the best PSG striker and overall third-best with 23 goals, while another line player — Evgeni Pevnov — is the best scorer of the Danish runners-up, with 12 strikes
• no other group phase participant conceded more goals by now compared to Fredericia (112); in attack, the Danish side only scored four goals fewer than Paris
• it is the first time both sides lock horns in an official match
• PSG took a clear 39:25 win against Ivry — their fifth victory in the same number of matches in the French league — while Fredericia beat Nordsjaelland 32:23

HC Eurofarm Pelister (MKD) vs Sporting CP (POR)
Wednesday 9 October, 20:45 CEST, live on EHFTV

• Eurofarm Pelister have lost the last 17 EHF Champions League matches, including three in the current season (against PSG, Berlin and Dinamo), being one of the only three teams still without a point
• on the other hand, Sporting CP have a clean slate of three wins this season, top the group table and have scored the highest number of goals of all 16 teams (110) after three rounds
• Sporting won two of the previous four duels against the Macedonian champions, but Eurofarm Pelister remained unbeaten in the last two games, with a draw at Lisbon and a home win in the 2021/22 group phase of the EHF European League
• the Costa brothers Martim (20 goals) and Francisco (19 goals) have scored 39 of the 110 goals by now; but the best Eurofarm Pelister shooter is ahead of both — team captain Filip Kuzmanovski with 21 goals
• both teams won their domestic matches last weekend with the same result, 35:23: Sporting in Portugal against Braga, Eurofarm Pelister against Kumanovo in North Macedonia

Füchse Berlin (GER) vs Orlen Wisla Plock (POL)
Thursday 10 October, 18:45 CEST, live on EHFTV

• after their opening home defeat against Veszprém, Berlin won both away matches at Bitola and Fredericia, while Plock are on zero points after the defeats against Sporting, Dinamo and PSG
• two Füchse players have scored 20 or more goals by now: the Danish duo Mathias Gidsel (23) and Lasse Andersson (20); in between in the rankings is Michal Daszek, Plock’s best scorer with 22 strikes
• the only two previous duels of both sides occurred in the 2021/22 EHF European League group phase and each team won the away match
• right at the start of the season, both sides won their domestic Super Cups: Plock beat Kielce, while Berlin defeated Magdeburg
• in the Polish league, Plock have won all five matches by now, including a 40:31 against Azoty-Pulawy last week; Füchse won 34:25 at Wetzlar on Sunday

Veszprém HC (HUN) vs Dinamo Bucuresti (ROU)
Thursday 10 October, 18:45 CEST, live on EHFTV

• new Veszprém coach Xavi Pascual will face his former club, which he steered to the EHF Finals in Hamburg in May 2024; besides, centre back Luca Cindric also played for Bucuresti last season
  Bucuresti’s new coach David Davis was Veszprém’s coach from 2018 to 2021, as successor of Momir Ilic
• while the Romanian champions won all three group matches by now and top the group alongside Sporting, Veszprém’s streak came to a halt with the 30:39 defeat at Sporting CP in round 3
• by beating dethroned champions SC Magdeburg in the final at Cairo after overtime, Veszprém became club world champions for the first time
• Nedim Remili, who was awarded MVP of the club world championship, is currently the top scorer of the Machineseeker EHF Champions League with 25 goals; the best Dinamo striker is Icelandic new arrival Haukur Thrastarson with 14 goals
• Dinamo top the Romanian league with six wins in the same number of matches — the latest a 36:25 victory at Odorhei — while Veszprém beat Eger 39:25 to have a clean record in the Hungarian league too

GROUP B

HC Zagreb (CRO) vs OTP Bank - PICK Szeged (HUN)
Wednesday 9 October, 18:45 CEST, live on EHFTV

• Zagreb are currently sixth in the group with two points while Szeged are second with four points after three rounds
• in round 3, Zagreb lost in Kolstad (29:25), despite eight goals from Luka Lovre Klarica
• on the other hand, Szeged defeated Nantes (33:32), with Richárd Bodó scoring the winning goal on the buzzer
• Lovre Klarica is currently Zagreb’s best scorer in the competition with 20 goals, while Szeged’s Mario Sostaric has netted two more
• the two sides have played 20 times against each other in the EHF Champions League since 1996: Szeged won 11 times, Zagreb three and six games ended in a draw
• both teams remain undefeated in their domestic competitions: Zagreb beat Metkovic on Friday (36:23), while Szeged did not have a game on their schedule last weekend

HBC Nantes (FRA) vs Kolstad Håndbold (NOR)
Thursday 10 October, 20:45 CEST, live on EHFTV

• both clubs are tied at the bottom of the group with two points after three rounds
• Kolstad took their first points of the season in round 3 by beating Zagreb (29:25), as Sigvaldi Gudjonsson scored 11 times
• on the other hand, Nantes came back empty-handed from Szeged (33:32), despite Valero Rivera scoring nine
• Nantes’ Valero Rivera is the Machineseeker EHF Champions League second best-scorer this season, with 24 goals, while Gudjonsson has netted 15 times for Kolstad
• this game will be the first ever between the two teams in European competitions
• last weekend, Kolstad suffered their first domestic defeat of the season in Elverum (30:28) while Nantes won 35:29 in Nimes

SC Magdeburg (GER) vs Industria Kielce (POL)
Thursday 10 October, 20:45 CEST, live on EHFTV

• Magdeburg are currently third in the group with three points, one point ahead of Kielce
• the German side managed to come back with a point from Aalborg in round 3 (33:33), as Gisli Kristjansson scored seven
• Kielce suffered their second straight loss in their last game against Barça (32:28)
• Magdeburg and Kielce only played three times against each other in European competitions: two wins for Magdeburg — including in the final in 2023 — and one for Kielce
• Magdeburg’s Ómar Ingi Magnusson has netted 16 goals so far this season, four more than Michal Olejniczak, Kielce’s best scorer
• while Magdeburg haven’t had a Bundesliga match on their schedule recently, Kielce defeated Legionowo in the Polish league last weekend (34:19)

MOTW: Barça (ESP) vs Aalborg Handbold (DEN)
Thursday 10 October, 20:45 CEST, live on EHFTV

• Barça are the only team in group B with the maximum of six points after three games, while Aalborg are fourth in the group with three points
• in round 3, Barça took the points in Kielce (32:28), partly thanks to Melvyn Richardson’s eight goals
• in the meantime, Aalborg drew with Magdeburg (33:33), as Patrick Wiesmach and Lukas Nilsson scored seven each
• with 98 goals, Barça are the best offence in group B, while Aalborg have scored just four less in the first three rounds
• Barça won all 12 confrontations between the two clubs in European competitions, including last season’s final (31:30)
• Aalborg lost their first game in the Danish league last weekend against GOG (33:27), while Barça beat Torrelavega 41:26

Photos ©  Victor Salgado (main), Mihai Neacsu (Dinamo in-text), Henrik Hansen (Aalborg in-text)