CSKA and Györ eye first place

Group B leaders CSKA will try to extend their four-match winning run in the DELO EHF Champions League Match of the Week on Sunday against Odense Håndbold, who have just one point less than the Russian side.

The weekend will feature a double header between BV Borussia 09 Dortmund and Györi Audi ETO KC, who agreed to play their round 7 and round 8 matches on Friday and Sunday. Both encounters will be held in Györ.

Moving on to group A, CSM can also extend their lead if they win against Krim, while Bietigheim are still eyeing their first victory of the season as they meet FTC.

GROUP A
FTC Rail-Cargo Hungaria (HUN) vs SG BBM Bietigheim (GER)
Saturday 7 November, 16:00 CET, live on EHFTV

• the Hungarian side are now at full strength, after missing key players Katrin Klujber, Noemi Hafra and Emily Bölk in October
• Bietigheim are the only side in the group that did not collect any points until now. If they lose on Saturday, they will equal their worst losing run in the DELO EHF Champions League, eight games in a row
• if they take the two points against Bietigheim, FTC will become only the sixth team in the history of the competition to reach the 90-win mark, after Györ, Buducnost, Hypo, Krim and Larvik
• both sides recorded away wins on Wednesday: FTC had a tough game against Vac in their domestic league, 29:25, while Bietigheim earned a 42:25 win against Mainz in the German Cup
• the two sides have met four times in the premium European competition, with FTC taking three wins, including two on their home court

Rostov-Don (RUS) vs Team Esbjerg (DEN)
Saturday 7 November, 16:00 CET, live on EHFTV

• the Russian team are unbeaten this season, having won three games and drawn once to place them third on the table, one point behind leaders CSM Bucuresti
• Esbjerg are on their longest-ever run without a win in the premium European competition – four games in a row
• both sides won their domestic league games this week: Esbjerg drubbed Vendsyssel 34:15, while Rostov extended their unbeaten run in the Russian league with a 26:25 win against rivals CSKA
• Rostov have won three out of the four mutual games played between the two sides in European competitions

RK Krim Mercator (SLO) vs CSM Bucuresti (ROU)
Saturday 7 November, 18:00 CET, live on EHFTV

• CSM are the group leaders, with four victories out of five games, and could extend their winning streak to three games provided they win in Slovenia
• Slovenian right back Barbara Lazovic – CSM’s second top scorer this season, with 20 goals in five games – will face her former team, for whom she played for six seasons
• the Romanian side were also in superb form this week, winning all four domestic league games played in a centralised tournament
• CSM have dominated their mutual encounters against Krim, winning five out of the six games played between the sides

GROUP B
BV Borussia 09 Dortmund (GER) vs Györi Audi ETO KC (HUN)
Friday 6 November, 18:30 CET, live on EHFTV

Györi Audi ETO KC (HUN) vs BV Borussia 09 Dortmund (GER)
Sunday 8 November, 14:00 CET, live on EHFTV

• Györ are ranked second on the table, with eight points, ahead of Odense and Brest (also eight points) on goal difference
• Dortmund have two points after five games and are yet to claim their first points on the home court
• with 155 conceded goals, Dortmund have the least effective defence in group B and the second worst in the whole competition after fellow German side Bietigheim
• Györ’s Veronica Kristiansen occupies joint third place in the competition’s scoring list, with 30 goals
• on Wednesday, Dortmund were surprisingly eliminated from the German Cup, losing to Buxtehuder SV 26:25 in a Last 16 match

MOTW: CSKA (RUS) vs Odense Håndbold (DEN)
Sunday 8 November, 14:00 CET, live on EHFTV

• following four straight victories, CSKA are on top of group B with nine points after five matches
• Odense missed a chance to leapfrog the Russian side in round 6, as they lost 24:31 at home against Brest; now the Danish side are third-placed with eight points
• CSKA have a Danish line player, Kathrine Heindahl, who had two spells at Odense, in 2010/11 and from 2017 to 2020, and also a Danish head coach, Jan Leslie. Read the Interview of the Week with Heindahl
• CSKA’s top scorer Elena Mikhaylichenko will miss the game due to a knee injury suffered on Tuesday in the Russian league game against Rostov-Don
• the Moscow-based team lost this week’s domestic match by one goal (26:25); also on Tuesday, Odense beat Kobenhavn Håndbold in the Danish league (29:24)