OTP Bank - PICK Szeged were chanceless against a cold-as-ice Magdeburg side in Wednesday’s Match of the Week. It was SCM’s third victory against Szeged in this season, after beating them twice in the group phase.
QUARTER-FINALS, FIRST LEG
H2H: 1-0-6
Top scorers: Mario Šoštarić 9/14 (OTP Bank - PICK Szeged); Gísli Krístjansson 7/9, Albin Lagergren 7/10 (SC Magdeburg)
POTM: Albin Lagergren (SC Magdeburg)
- in a high-octane clash with full speed and high intensity, Szeged had to replace two back-court stars: Lazar Kukić and Richárd Bodó, while Magdeburg played their full rotation
- in the first 15 minutes, Szeged were not able to stop Magdeburg’s high-speed attacks and fell behind 10:5, before Mario Šoštarić netted a series of counterattack goals to level the score at 11:11
- right after the break, both sides accelerated even more, but the number of mistakes also rose — mainly on Szeged’s side, as SCM took the upper hand, pulling ahead to a six-goal advantage for the first time, 26:20
- the keys for Magdeburg’s clear lead were the back-court trio Felix Claar, Krístjansson and Albin Lagergren, who combined for 20 goals; left wing Matthias Musche (four goals from four attempts); and goalkeeper Sergey Hernández (11 saves)
- latest at 33:27 four minutes before the end, the winners were confirmed; in the final minutes, Szeged even failed twice on penalties against Matej Mandić
Szeged lack alternatives from the bench
Will history repeat for Szeged? Five times since 2015, the Hungarian powerhouse were eliminated by German clubs in the knockout stage of the EHF Champions League: Four times by THW Kiel, (2015, 2016, 2018, 2021) and once by SG Flensburg-Handewitt (2022).
In the previous season, they were the closest to Cologne they have ever come, losing the quarter-final against record winners Barça by two goals on aggregate despite an away win at Palau Blaugrana. The reason for that elimination was a 24:27 home defeat in the first leg. And perhaps this home defeat in the first leg will be the reason for another elimination.
Against SC Magdeburg, Szeged missed depth on the bench compared to the defending champions. While Magdeburg could rotate as usual, most of the hosts’ key players needed to be on court in defence and attack for almost the whole match. After going separate ways with Jim Gottfridsson and without the injured stars Kukić and Bodó, the number of alternatives was too limited to stop Magdeburg’s express handball.
It was not a perfect match, but there is no such thing in handball. If you don’t make too many mistakes, you have a chance to win the game. I am satisfied, but this is only the first half of the tie. We had a good first half, but now we have to focus on the next match to reach the [TruckScout24 EHF] FINAL4.
We only played well in the first half. We managed to equalise then, but in the second half we tried in the same way, and our shots did not go in. Handball is decided by many small details, and we will work on these until the second leg. We still want to get to Cologne!
