Füchse register first loss of the season, Dinamo win Romanian derby
The second evening of the main round of the EHF European League Men provided a dramatic setting, with plenty of twists and turns, delivering one of the biggest upsets of the season, as reigning champions Füchse Berlin lost their second match in the last two seasons, 31:32, against Sporting CP.
RK Nexe took a point from Gorenje Velenje, while Skjern Handbold extended their winning run to two matches against IK Sävehof, with Bjerringbro/Silkeborg and SG Flensburg-Handewitt also cruising to clear wins.
I feel like we've struggled in attack all over the game. It was hard to win the man-man duels against their strong players. We're happy with how our defense looked in the first half, but overall this was a tough game.
It was a tough game for us. We struggled in defense during the first half, and then got a little bit better in the second. After the break, we also became more effective in attack, which proved to be the key today.
First of all, I can only say ˝hats off to my players.˝ They showed very good energy on the court and played a great game even without our key left-hander. I would like to praise my team once again. They showed heart and courage against a really good Nasice team.
For me, this match was very difficult considering how much time I had to prepare for this match. We only had two days, one of which was Sunday, which we used to regenerate and recuperate. As long as we were able to stick to our previously-agreed tactics, at the very beginning of the match, we played excellently. Then the old habitsbecame visible again such as a lack of discipline in defense and technical errors, which brought them back from our five-goal lead. In the second half, we improved some things and played well in defense. Despite this, we conceded some easy goals and were even worse in those clear scoring chances. The match ended with a draw, which does not suit us at the moment, but nevertheless we will not raise the 'white flag'. I congratulate Velenje on a very good game, as they managed to pick themselves up after a big defeat in Skjern. They were really excellent in all segments of the game. We have to prepare better for the second leg.
I am satisfied with this six-goal win. Kadetten have taken points from Flensburg-Handewitt in the past which means they have a good team. Winning by six against them is very good for us.
Congratulations to Bjerringbro-Silkeborg. They were a better team. They scored 36 goals, so we could not win. I just have to congratulate them.
I congratulate Flensburg on a well-deserved victory. We played well in the first half, but lacked rotation strength. We played against a team that may have the best shape in Europe and is among the top 5 teams in the world. When we look at their results, they get 10-15 goals difference at halftime against rivals in all competitions. An amazing team, basically the Scandinavian national team. We looked good in some moments. On the other hand, in the opening 10 minutes of the second we were far below the required level. In games like this one it's hard to rotate players, change them attack-defense. We're not used to that. We'll analyze this, and aim to become better.
My impression of Vojvodina is very positive, especially considering how much they've progressed recently. I have known this club since 5 years ago when they played in the European League. Huge progress in all aspects. If we look at today's match, Vojvodina created a lot of problems for us in the first half, but we knew that if we manage calm, because we have individual quality, that we will open the gap. We were afraid of Vojvodina because they always had a good defense.
We still have everything in our own hands, we have to win in Lisbon with two goals and then celebrate in our home game against Constanta. The second half is something that cannot happen to us, we have to look at this and then keep our heads up again.
This is an amazing night for us - we won against the leading team in the Bundesliga and one of the best in Europe at the moment. I am so proud of us.
I want to congratulate my team on an amazing game. Our defense was very strong and I think that won us the game. We worked on that, because in Lisbon we did not play as we wanted to, but in front of our fans, we can do amazing things. They gave us power today, the atmosphere was amazing and I want to thank them. We still have work to do, and we have to win the game next week in Constanta.
