Intriguing return legs in Spain and Slovakia in qualification round 2

SECOND LEG

Super Amara Bera Bera (ESP) vs Sport Lisboa e Benfica (POR)
Saturday 12 October, 12:00 CEST

• the ambitious hosts are on an incredible unbeaten streak on home court with their last defeat dating back to May last year
• Bera Bera are the reigning Spanish champions, but they started the new season in Spain by recording only a couple of wins from their four opening matches
• in their last and only meeting in Spain, Bera Bera secured a win (33:28) against Benfica in the Iberian Supercup's semi-finals last season
• the Portuguese club is trailing by a couple of goals (30:28) in the tie and Benfica will have to find consistency in their performance if they are to mount a comeback
• right back Patrícia Rodrigues scored eight goals in the first leg and was Benfica's top scorer, while no other teammate scored more than four goals and she will need a helping hand in the offence
• the winner of the tie will face MKS FunFloor Lublin in qualification round 3

Vác (HUN) vs Cabooter Fortes Venlo (NED)
Saturday 12 October, 16:00 CEST

• the Hungarian club secured a dominant 15-goal win (37:22) in the first leg in the Netherlands
• Vác scored more goals in the first half (24) than Venlo scored (22) during the whole match, which speaks volumes about the former team's quality
• Sharon Grummel scored 10 goals and was Venlo's top scorer in the first leg, while no other teammate scored more than a couple of goals and they will need to improve in the offence
• Venlo are unbeaten on the road at the start of the season, as the Dutch club noted a couple of away wins in the domestic league and they are joint-top in the standings
• the winner of the tie will face Thüringer HC in qualification round 3

Hypo Niederösterreich (AUT) vs JDA Bourgogne Dijon Handball (FRA)
Saturday 12 October, 18:05 CEST

• the former four-time EHF Champions League winners are undefeated on home court in all competitions over the past year and a half, but their remarkable home record will be put to a difficult test
• Hypo are chasing a 16-goal (42:26) deficit, as the Austrian club was inferior in every aspect of the match to Dijon in the first leg
• the French club looked like a team on a mission in the first leg, as Dijon were eliminated in qualification round 2 last season and they want to reach the EHF European League's group stage this time
• Hypo's three goalkeepers recorded six saves together, while Dijon's Ann-Cathrin Johanna Giegerich made 11 saves alone in the first leg and that is one of the aspects they need to improve on ahead of the return leg
• the winner of the tie will face ZRK Zrinski Cakovec in qualification round 3

SU ZRK Crvena Zvezda (SRB) vs HSG Blomberg-Lippe (GER)
Saturday 12 October, 20:00 CEST

• the reigning Serbian champions are unbeaten on home court in all competitions over the past calendar year
• the Belgrade-based club is trailing by 15 goals (39:24) in the tie and the Red and Whites will need to mount a monumental comeback if they are to secure progress in the next round
• Blomberg-Lippe's record on the road at the start of the season is poor as they have lost a couple of away games in the Bundesliga and recorded only one win on the road in the German Cup
• the German club first leg's performance was impressive on both sides of the court, as only a couple of their outfield players didn't get on the scoresheet, while their goalkeeper Melanie Veith made eight saves and noted 32 per cent save efficiency between the sticks
• the winner of the tie will face TUSSIES Metzingen in qualification round 3

Armada Praxis Yalikavaspor (TUR) vs KPR Gminy Kobierzyce (POL)
Sunday 13 October, 16:00 CEST

• the reigning Turkish champions can increase their chances of mounting a comeback if they display an improved team performance on home court in front of their own fans
• the veteran Yeliz Özel was instrumental in the first leg in Poland, as the 44-year-old playmaker pulled all the strings and scored nine goals
• Yalikavaspor lost the first leg (36:27) and they are trailing by nine goals in the tie
• Kobierzyce displayed a much more mature and consistent performance in the first leg, as the Polish made the most out of Yalikavaspor's technical errors to increase their advantage towards the final minutes of both halves
• the winner of the tie will face Larvik HK in qualification round 3

HC Gjorche Petrov-WHC Skopje (MKD) vs H 65 Höörs HK (SWE)
Sunday 13 October, 18:00 CEST

• the reigning Macedonian champions are unbeaten on home court in Skopje since last season, when Atticgo Bm Elche defeated Gjorche Petrov in the quarter-finals on the way to the EHF European Cup's title
• Sime Simovski's squad came close to equalizing against Höörs a few times in the first leg, but ended up losing the match (29:21) due to the inconsistency in their performance
• only six of Gjorche Petrov's players got on the scoresheet in the first leg and the rest of the squad will need to up their performances in order to display a much better offensive performance
• Josefine Hultberg Dahlgren made 14 saves and recorded a 43 per cent save efficiency between the posts in the first leg, as the young goalkeeper was one of Höörs' key players
• the winner of the tie will face Paris 92 in qualification round 3

HC DAC Dunajská Streda (SVK) vs SCM Ramnicu Valcea (ROU)
Sunday 13 October, 19:00 CEST

• the reigning Slovakian champions have suffered only one loss on home court in all competitions over this calendar year
• Viktor Debre's squad came back from a seven-goal deficit in the first leg and left Romania with only a couple of goals (28:26) separating them and Valcea, which surely is a confidence booster for Dunajská's players
• if Dunajská Streda can find consistency in their performance, they can be hopeful about mounting a full comeback in front of their own fans
• Valcea will hope to avoid dips in their performance in the return leg as Bent Dahl's squad was on the brink of securing a huge win until their level dropped in the final minutes of the match
• the winner of the tie will face DVSC Schaeffler in qualification round 3

Photos © Sport Lisboa e Benfica (main), Foxaep, Michał Ciechanowicz/KPR Gminy Kobierzyce & SCM Ramnicu Valcea (in-text)