EHF European League

Plock host Füchse in standout tie of round 3

EHF / Danijela Vekic, Kevin Domas, Tiago Nogueira, Björn Pazen

15 November 2021, 12:00

GROUP A

Tatran Presov (SVK) vs Pfadi Winterthur (SUI)
Tuesday 16 November, 18:45 CET, live on EHFTV

Presov are on two points after beating Irun and losing at Füchse Winterthur have lost both matches against Plock and Irun
the teams meet for the first time in a European competition
Presov goalkeeper Tilen Leben: "Pfadi play a somewhat similar style to us, fast handball. So I expect to see a fast tempo match. Both teams also put up a lot of fight in defence so this will be a physical encounter"
Pfadi have won the top duel of the Swiss league on Saturday, beating Amicitia Zürich to reduce the gap to the second-ranked side to only one point
Presov top the table of the Slovakian league with 10 wins from as many matches

Bidasoa Irun (ESP) vs Fenix Toulouse Handball (FRA)
Tuesday 16 November, 20:45 CET, live on EHFTV

Irun have two points from their victory against Winterthur on their account, while Toulouse lost both previous matches
it is the first time both clubs face in an official match
Fenix new arrival, Spaniard Eric Balenciaga, played for Logrono last season
Irun had a perfect dress rehearsal by beating former EHF Cup winners Granollers in the Spanish league: 34:28
Toulouse tied with Cesson in the French Starligue and rank only 11th
Bidasoa Irun head coach Jacobo Cuétara: "Fenix Toulouse have started with two away games against Füchse and Plock, the two main favourites. So their zero points are not significant."

Orlen Wisla Plock (POL) vs Füchse Berlin (GER)
Tuesday 16 November, 20:45 CET, live on EHFTV

both sides have won both their two group matches so far
Plock and Berlin were each group winners and, ultimately, participants in the EHF Finals 2021 with Berlin finishing second and Plock fourth
though they are regular participants in European competitions, this is the first ever duel of “Oilers” and “Foxes”
Berlin are second ranked in the Germany Bundesliga, but just lost to No. 1 Magdeburg at home: 29:33
after nine victories from nine matches, Plock share the lead in the Polish league with Lomza Vive Kielce

Füchse Berlin are an amazing team, currently in good shape with a high level of play. They have their own good game system, which they have been developing together for a long time. We always look forward to such meetings.

Xavi Sabaté

Orlen Wisla Plock head coach

GROUP B

Chekhovskie medvedi (RUS) vs TBV Lemgo Lippe (GER)
Tuesday 16 November, 18:45 CET, live on EHFTV

the two clubs played against each other three times in European club competitions, but the last time was more than a decade ago
Chekhov are currently bottom of group B with zero point, while Lemgo have two, having taken the points in round 2 in Nantes
this weekend, Lemgo won their Bundesliga game in Lübbecke (28:26); the German side is currently ranked sixth in its national league
Chekhov are currently top of the Russian Super League, with 11 wins in 12 games; the last one was last Thursday in Saratov (36:28)

Cocks (FIN) vs SL Benfica (POR)
Tuesday 16 November, 18:45 CET, live on EHFTV

Cocks and Benfica faced each other in the EHF Cup 2016/17, and Benfica won both confrontations: 23:21 in Finland, 26:25 at home
in their European history, Cocks suffered five losses to Portuguese sides, winning only once – against Sporting CP in the EHF Champions League two years ago
after two rounds, Cocks have yet to take a point and stand at the last place of the group, while Benfica are leaders, with the maximum of four points
Benfica suffered their first defeat of the season in their domestic league this weekend, losing to Sporting at home (27:30)
Cocks remain the undefeated leader of the Finnish league after winning their ninth game in a row against AIFK on Thursday (41:24)

HBC Nantes (FRA) vs GOG (DEN)
Tuesday 16 November, 20:45 CET, live on EHFTV

this game will be the first between the two sides in European competitions
Nantes goalkeeper Emil Nielsen will face many of his national teammates, including Simon Pytlick and Mathias Gidsel, who he played the Golden League with two weeks ago
GOG are currently the best offence of the group phase, with 85 goals across two games, while Nantes are the seventh best defence, with 56 goals conceded
after the win this weekend over Istres (36:31), Nantes are currently ranked second of the French Lidl Starligue, five points behind Paris
GOG remain the undefeated leader of the Danish league after their win last Thursday in Skanderborg (31:23)

Chekhovskie medvedi are a physically strong team with a quite unorthodox playing style. We will face other situations than we are used to in the German league. We hope that we will be able to repeat the performance we showed in our away game in Nantes.

Florian Kehrmann

TBV Lemgo Lippe head coach

A difficult match awaits us against one of the favourites of our group. They cultivate fast and likeable handball. We promise with the team that we will fight and leave our hearts on the court and do everything for a positive result.

Aleks Kavčič, player of Gorenje Velenje

RK Gorenje Velenje left back

We know we are going to face a strong opponent. USAM Nimes are currently in the top 5 teams in France, one of the strongest leagues in Europe. But playing for a club like Sporting CP, the mindset is always on the victory

Manuel Gaspar

Sporting CP goalkeeper