Esbjerg too strong for Brest in MOTW; FTC retain perfect record
Round 6 of the EHF Champions League Women 2026/27 group stage opened on Saturday with six exciting games. The Match of the Week took place in Denmark, where Team Esbjerg claimed a confident win over Brest Bretagne Handball. In the same group A, FTC-Toyota Kovács maintained their perfect record in the competition by defeating BV Borussia Dortmund, while RK Krim OTP Group Mercator earned their first points in the campaign.
In group B, Metz Handball and Györi Audi ETO KC, who had split the points in the previous round, got back to winning ways, defeating HSG Blomberg-Lippe and Odense Håndbold respectively, while Gloria Bistrita proved too strong for Storhamar Håndball Elite.
The key was that we did our job in the first minutes, we pushed them in a physical way. We have a strong team and a lot of really high level player. This means that when we can push the other team physically from the beginning, the percentages rises for us during the game. In the first half today we could have been a little bit more cynical, making maybe a little bit more advantage than three goals in the break. In the second half we had two shots in the open goal that made our shoulders fall down a little bit and then it was a good game from our side from that point.
I'm a little bit disappointed because the second half was not good for us. We missed a lot of shots and we made too many easy mistakes and FTC punished them. We knew that FTC are a strong team, but I think for us it's a little bit too high.
I am very satisfied with a nine-goal win against Brest. Especially winning the second half by nine goals. We were well prepared and the players followed the game plan. We did have too many technical errors in the first half, and yet I felt like we had the game under control. During the break we saw some game footage, and we felt like this was a match we should not lose.
It was a tough match for us today. After the first half, everything looked fine as it was still equal, but after the break we knew what will come from Team Esbjerg, but we did not do what was needed, so I can only congratulate Esbjerg with the win today.
It was the plan from the start that during this period we needed to be at our highest level. I actually think we have shown a progression from when we started until now, and we have successfully reached this level. We wanted it last week as well, but it was our first very important game and perhaps a new team was a little too nervous and doubtful. But we managed to shake that off, and today they showed a stable and strong team performance. I am very happy to see that this long, hard run everyone has put in is finally paying off.
What can I say. For two weeks we have seen the same scenario, just with a different outcome. In one game we celebrated, in the other we did not. In moments like these, you simply need a bit of luck, which must also be earned. Ultimately, we missed our chance, as we had an extra player and a penalty shot 30 seconds before the end. We continuously experience certain drops in our game during the second half. I calculated that I would rest some key players for the finish by bringing in fresh players, but perhaps I disrupted our rhythm by doing so. In an even finish like today's, luck is essential, and I congratulate Krim on their victory.
This is my third time playing against them. They have a great team and I have big respect for this team. They made a great game plan and it was very difficult for us. We fought from the beginning until the end and we are happy we got the points.
I want to congratulate Gloria Bistrita. They played a good game and a well prepared one. We struggled in defence, we lost a lot of duels, they have great players so of course we struggled a lot. So Delgado was great today.
The overall performance was mixed. The first half left us wanting a little more, regardless of the scoreline, which was flattering to us. I’m not convinced we were playing at our maximum intensity. The second half was good, even very, very good, and allowed the team to build a lead quite quickly. It takes two teams to play a match, so we shouldn’t expect to be 10 goals ahead all the time, and that’s not what we’re aiming for either.
I think we showed that we gave it our all and put in a good performance. However, we weren’t able to match Metz’s level of quality throughout the entire match, and we fought as hard as we could. Metz have a lot of quality, both in their style of play and across the squad as a whole. We showed a little more of our potential than we did last week.
It's a bitter feeling right now. We had our chances and I think we delivered a strong performance in both ends today. We put up a fight for the whole 60 minutes, and I have the feeling that we were unlucky in some decisive moments. I'm proud of this team with the journey we are on right now, and it's an extra feeling of bitterness when you feel, that you only allow them two points due to your own mistakes.
We played very stressed in the beginning and we gave away a lot of chances. We were struggling in defence in the beginning also. I have to say Sandra was maybe the most important part in that first 15 minutes. We were in control during the last 10 minutes of the first half and we were three, four goals up. Then again we did some mistakes that we normally don't do. In the end, you need players like Elver who will take the finish, the last shot. These are two extremely important points for us. Now it will be hard for Odense to overtake us.
