Paris and Berlin with last-gasp victories; Veszprém win MOTW

Paris Saint-Germain and Füchse Berlin were lucky to take both points, and One Veszprém’s Match of the Week win against Industria Kielce was also on the edge. Barça were ahead for 59 minutes, but Szeged were always close behind.

• scoring nine goals, Nedim Remili steered One Veszprém HC to a 35:33 home victory against Industria Kielce in the MOTW — their third consecutive win of the season
• Barça’s 30:27 victory was the 20th win overall against Szeged, and was secured only in the final minutes of an almost equal encounter
• a 4:0 run in the last 73 seconds provided Paris with a lucky 35:32 win despite a combined 18 goals from Zagreb duo Luka Klarica and Ihar Bialiauski
• despite 11 goals, Mathias Gidsel was not Berlin’s hero in the thriller against Dinamo, as Tobias Grøndahl scored the winning strike from a penalty with the final buzzer
• Gidsel received his two EHF Excellence Awards for 2024/25, including MVP, from EHF President Michael Wiederer before Füchse's match; Barça trio Emil Nielsen, Ludovic Fabregas and Ian Barrufet also received their awards for last season

GROUP A

MOTW: One Veszprém HC (HUN) vs Industria Kielce (POL) 35:33 (21:15)

H2H: 12-2-6
Top scorers: Nedim Remili 9/18 (One Veszprém HC), Piotr Jarosiewicz 8/9 (Industria Kielce)
POTM: Nedim Remili (One Veszprém HC)

A steal from new arrival Ivan Martinovic 15 seconds before the final buzzer secured Veszprém’s close but deserved victory in the 20th duel against Kielce. At the break, the hosts seemed on track for the win, leading by six goals after a highly efficient performance in attack, but Veszprém were extremely shaken by Kielce in the second half. Goalkeeper Rodrigo Corrales was again a crucial factor for Veszprém — nine saves does not appear so much, but the Spaniard was there when it counted, saving many key shots. On the other hand, left wing Piotr Jarosiewicz scored eight goals from nine attempts for Kielce, and was only beaten by Frenchman Nedim Remili, who netted nine times for the victors and was awarded Player of the Match.

Veszprém seemed to have the match under control, but made too many mistakes against a clearly improved Kielce defence in the second period. When Jarosiewicz scored for 27:26, the match was close to turning, but the hosts pulled ahead to 32:27 with nine minutes left. Kielce showed morale and were on their way to an equaliser at 34:33, when Ivan Martinovic cleverly stole the ball and caused a suspension for Theo Monar. With one player more on court, Veszprém’s veteran wing Gasper Marguc netted the final goal almost with the buzzer.

Füchse Berlin (GER) vs Dinamo Bucuresti (ROU) 32:31 (16:18)

H2H: 5-1-1
Top scorers: Mathias Gidsel 11/17 (Füchse Berlin), Andrii Akimenko 7/8 (Dinamo Bucuresti)

Almost one year ago, on 24 October 2024, Füchse Berlin lost a home match in the Machineseeker EHF Champions League for the last time. On Thursday night, that home record was nearly broken, but a penalty goal from Tobias Grøndahl after the final buzzer and video replay provided Berlin with their fourth group phase victory in the same number of matches.

Following seven consecutive wins in all competitions, Berlin were far below their regular level, while Dinamo Bucuresti continued their solid form. Ionut Iancu won the goalkeeper duel versus Dejan Milosavljev clearly, finishing with an overall of 13 saves. Dinamo took their first lead at 10:9, then turned a 15:14 deficit into a 18:16 advantage at the break. The match was on the edge and every time the hosts had the chance to pull ahead they failed to score. The score of 24:23 in minute 44 was Berlin’s last advantage until minute 59 and the score of 30:29. After a red card against their defence ace Robert Militaru, Bucharest lost their precision in attack and lacked some power — but were still on track for a draw when Miklos Rosta levelled at 31:31 with eight seconds left. Following a foul against Mijajlo Marsenic, Berlin received the final penalty, and Grøndahl converted. 

GROUP B

Paris Saint-Germain (FRA) vs HC Zagreb (CRO) 35:32 (18:17)

H2H: 12-1-2
Top scorers: Ferran Sole 10/10 (Paris Saint-Germain), Luka Klarica 9/12, Ihar Bialiauski 9/14 (HC Zagreb)

Two points from three matches and the only victory a close one against Eurofarm Pelister — PSG’s start under new coach Stefan Madsen did not bring the desired results. In group B, only HC Zagreb had fewer points this season — and had taken just one point (in 2016) in six matches in Paris overall prior to Thursday’s clash. But the record Croatian champions brought a great fight, though the hosts managed to turn the match around in the last minutes.

73 seconds before the end, Zagreb were ahead 32:31, but then Paris scored like a machine: Top scorer Ferran Sole, Sindre Heldal and Wallem-Konrad Peleka netted for a 4:0 run that secured Paris two points they had seemed to be lost. PSG’s win was reminiscent of that against Eurofarm Pelister, when a late 7:0 run was the key for the victory. Luka Klarica and Ihar Bialiauski, combining for 18 goals, were the driving forces for the visitors, who were ahead 29:26 in minute 50. But running out of power in the last seconds was the reason for their fourth defeat in the same number of matches. 

Barça (ESP) vs OTP Bank - PICK Szeged (HUN) 31:28 (14:13)

H2H: 20-1-6
Top scorers: Ludovic Fabregas 6/7, Ian Barrufet 6/8 (Barça), Mario Sostaric 8/9 (OTP Bank - PICK Szeged)

Last season, OTP Bank - PICK Szeged became the first club to win a knockout match at Palau Blaugrana in more than 25 years, but the 30:29 result in the second leg of the quarter-finals was not enough to book the Hungarian side’s first ticket to Cologne after a 27:24 defeat on home ground. On Thursday, Szeged were again a tough nut for Barça to crack. In the end, Barça took their 20th win in the 27th mutual duel.

Though four world-class goalkeepers were on court — Emil Nielsen and Viktor Hallgrímsson for Barça, Roland Mikler and Tobias Thulin for Szeged — none had much impact on the match. Defence was the key, as the speed and number of goals were low. The visitors were never in front after the score of 1:0, but Barça could not forge ahead against the clever and movable defence of the Hungarian runners-up. The biggest gap before the break was two goals and, despite pulling away by four goals several times, the hosts did not have full control. Szeged, as usual, were led by top scorer Mario Sostaric, who scored eight goals from nine attempts, but their last flame of hope was extinguished when Blaz Janc netted for 30:27 in minute 59. With six points alongside Plock, Barça remain the top hunters of SC Magdeburg on the group B table, while Szeged are two points below.