Esbjerg impress to knock Rostov from top spot

GROUP A

Team Esbjerg (DEN) vs Rostov-Don (RUS) 25:18 (13:10)

• back in the line-up after five rounds of absence due to an injury, Norwegian right wing Marit Rosberg Jacobsen scored eight goals, tying her best-ever game in the European premium competition from the 2015/16 season
• a 4:0 run inspired by Jacobsen was the backbone for Esbjerg’s win, taking the score to 7:4 after 17 minutes from which Rostov could not fight back
• Rostov failed to score more than 20 goals for the second time this season, while also tying their worst game in terms of attacking output, set against Metz Handball in February 2019
• no teams have conceded fewer goals than Esbjerg and Rostov-Don in the DELO EHF Champions League this season, 142, or an average of 23.6 goals conceded per game
• centre back Grace Zaadi and left wing Polina Kuznetsova combined for nine goals for Rostov-Don, half of the team’s tally in this game
• the Danish side extended their unbeaten run to four games, only two shy of their record in the DELO EHF Champions League before the doubleheader against Dortmund

Jensen works wonders with Esbjerg

With an undermanned roster, still missing the MVP of the IHF Women’s World Championship 2019, Estavana Polman, due to injury, Esbjerg are currently riding their best-ever start of the season in the DELO EHF Champions League, with four wins, a draw and a loss in their first six games.

The Danish side boast a tight defence, a smart attack, with plenty of options, and run like a well-oiled machine, a testament to Jesper Jensen’s great work over the last four years. Whether Esbjerg can be named as a contender is difficult to grasp, yet with last season’s EHF FINAL4 MVP, Henny Reistad, defensive lynchpin Marit Malm Frafjord and a great pair of goalkeepers in Rikke Poulsen and Dinah Eckerle – the latter saved 12 shots in this match – Esbjerg are definitely a difficult team to face this season.