Unbeaten Romanian sides to face Norwegian challenge

The Match of the Week will be hosted in Ljubljana, where Krim Mercator aim to win their second game of the season, against Brest Bretagne Handball, who have been delivering disappointing performances throughout the first five weeks of competition.

DHK Banik Most (CZE) vs FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria (HUN)
Saturday 22 October, 16:00 CEST, live on EHFTV

• in the first five matches, Most have conceded 200 goals, a record for the EHF Champions League Women, 29 goals more than Kastamonu, who conceded the second largest amount in the competition this season
• the Czech side are now on an eight-game losing run, dating back to October 2019, in their previous participation in the European premium competition
• after losing two consecutive matches, FTC can now seal their third unbeaten match in a row, after taking a point from the match against the reigning champions, Vipers, last week
• FTC’s right back, Katrin Klujber, is the third-best scorer of the competition this season, with 39 goals, eight less than the leader of the standings, Milena Raicevic
• Most have a single win in 11 matches played in the competition and are coming after a loss in the MOL League, 31:24, at home against Slovak side Dunajska Streda

Vipers Kristiansand (NOR) vs CSM Bucuresti (ROU)
Saturday 22 October, 18:00 CEST, live on EHFTV

• after winning 10 games on the trot, Vipers are now on a two-game winless run, with a loss against Bietigheim and a draw against FTC
• CSM have their best start of the season in history, with a five-game unbeaten run, as they could tie their record in the EHF Champions League Women, set between November 2017 and February 2018
• the Romanian side has not lost a game in the competition; securing 11 wins and drawing twice, once against Rapid in the domestic league and once against Bietigheim in the European premium competition
• CSM’s top scorer in the competition is Cristina Neagu, who ranks eighth in the top goal scorer standings, with 30 goals, needing only 60 goals to hit the 1,000-goal mark
• the two sides have played six times between each other, with each taking three wins, with two of CSM’s wins coming in Norway

MOTW: Krim Mercator Ljubljana (SLO) vs Brest Bretagne Handball (FRA)
Sunday 23 October, 14:00 CEST, live on EHFTV

• Krim have only won a single out of their five games played this season and lost both their matches played at home, against Vipers Kristiansand and FTC
• only one team, Lokomotiva Zagreb (103 goals) has scored less than Brest’s 123 goals, a surprising turn of events, as the French side was usually one of the best attacks in the competition
• Krim’s top scorers, back Daria Dmitrieva and right wing Jovanka Radicevic, have 29 goals each, ranking joint-ninth in the top goal scorer standings
• Radicevic only needs 10 goals to break Anita Görbicz’s record and become the all-time scorer of the EHF Champions League Women, with 1017 goals
• this will be Krim’s 290th match in the competition, only a single side, Buducnost (295 games) has reached that mark, but has won 153 games, 28 more than the Slovenian champions
• Krim have never won against Brest, losing both games in the 2020/21 season, 29:25 on their home court and 37:26 in Brest

Odense Håndbold (DEN) vs SG BBM Bietigheim (GER)
Sunday 23 October, 16:00 CEST, live on EHFTV

• a depleted Odense was dealt another huge blow last week, as the Danish side lost left back Noemi Hafra, who suffered a knee injury and will miss the rest of the season
• Hafra adds to Odense’s woes, who are missing five key backs – with Lois Abbingh, Mia Rej, Dione Housheer and Larissa Nusser all unavailable
• with a 44:22 win against Mainz in the German Cup, Bietigheim are entering the match against Odense with a 64-game unbeaten run, dating back to March 2021, where they won 63 matches and drew against CSM Bucuresti
• Bietigheim have the best attack in the competition, with 176 goals scored in five games and an efficiency of 72.7%, while Odense are lagging behind in the ninth place, with only 143 goals scored
• Bietigheim’s goalkeeper, Melinda Szikora, has been nothing short of amazing this season, displaying incredible consistency, with her lowest save percentage in a single match being 35%

GROUP B

Györi Audi ETO KC (HUN) - WHC Buducnost BEMAX (MNE)
Saturday 22 October, 18:00 CEST, live on EHFTV

• Hungarian champions are entering the game with two straight wins, after the defeat by Metz in round 3, while Buducnost performed well against Rapid Bucuresti in a match that ended with a draw
• two teams know each other well; since 2006 they played 25 matches with Györ being victorious in 18, three went on Buducnost side and four ended with a draw; the most recent encounter was in the 2021/22 quarter-finals both won by Györ
• Buducnost's team captain Milena Raicevic is the competition's top scorer, with 47 goal score at 61,8 per cent efficiency
• Györ are efficient from all positions but the one leading the top scorer list in the squad is Ana Gros, netting a total of 21
• the home team has both the most efficient attack and defence of the group, scoring 166 goals in five matches, while their defence conceded only 119 goals, while their opponents are placed fifth with a 146:145 goal difference
• Hungarian champions have overrun NEKA 34:20 and are the current leaders of the domestic championship

Metz Handball (FRA) vs HC Lokomotiva Zagreb (CRO)
Saturday 22 October, 18:00 CEST, live on EHFTV

• two teams have never met before
• French team welcomes the only team without a win this season, after their first defeat to Team Esbjerg (35:28) in round 5
• The Croatian team is the youngest team in the competition, still waiting for a maiden win, their only point won was eight years ago in their first season of the EHF Champions League Women, playing 23:23 against IK Sävehof
• Bruna de Paula is the first name of Metz's attack, scoring 26 times placing her in the top six top scorers of the season, Klara Birtic and Stela Posavec with 17 goals both are Lokomotiva's main scorers
• Metz have the sixth attack of the league with goal efficiency at 62 per cent, while Lokomotiva holds the last place with only 50,7 per cent efficiency
• both Metz and Lokomotiva won their last matches in domestic championships, Metz against Chambray and Lokomotiva against Trogir 58

CS Rapid Bucuresti (ROU) vs Storhamar Handball Elite (NOR)
Sunday 23 October, 14:00 CEST, live on EHFTV

• clash of the debutants of the season, marking their first encounter ever
• Rapid are only unbeaten team in the group, having three wins and two draws; only Metz and Buducnost have taken a point from the second Romanian participant
• Storhamar is on a defeat-win streak in five matches, coming after a good performance against Györ, securing the sixth spot in the group
• the Romanian team are second-best attack in the group, fourth in the whole competition netting 160 times, defence can be their sort spot as they conceded 147; in comparison, Storhamar conceded three less and are among the bottom clubs in attack
• most experienced player of Storhamar is Maja Jakobsen, who also leads their top scorer list with 32 goals, Eliza Iulia Buceschi netted ten less (22) in five matches for Rapid Bucuresti
• Rapid Bucuresti had a one-goal defeat (36:37) from SCM Râmnicu Vâlcea and are currently in sixth place in Romania
  
  

Kastamonu Belediyesi GSK (TUR) vs Team Esbjerg (DEN)
Sunday 23 October, 14:00 CEST, live on EHFTV

• there have been no previous encounters between the teams
• Kastamonu ended their negative streak of 17 straight defeats in the top-tier competition with a win over Lokomotiva 26:23
• The Turkish side has the least-effective defence of the group with 171 conceded goals in five matches and they face the fifth attack of the EHF Champions League Women; Esbjerg scored 159 goals in five matches at 65,4 per cent efficiency
• Team Esbjerg is coming after winning over Silkeborg Voel KFUM 34:29 in the domestic championship and is still holding first place in Denmark
• both teams have a player in the top 4 of the top scorer's list: Carlos Azenaide is currently second with 43 goals for Kastamonu, and Player of the Match in last week's MOTW Henny Ella Reistad is fourth with 37