Quarter-finals start with four fiery clashes

In the Match of the Week on Saturday, FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria host one of the leading teams from the group phase, Metz Handball. Fellow Hungarian side Györi Audi ETO KC travel to Odense Håndbold for a repeat of their 2018/19 quarter-final, when when Györ won both matches.

Sunday is reserved for two Romanian-Scandinavian clashes: CS Rapid Bucuresti host titleholders Vipers Kristiansand, while CSM Bucuresti aim to avenge last season’s loss against Team Esbjerg in the same phase of the competition.

QUARTER-FINALS, FIRST LEG

MOTW: FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria (HUN) vs Metz Handball (FRA)
Saturday 29 April, 16:00 CEST, live on EHFTV

• Metz earned a direct quarter-final spot after finishing top of Group B with 25 points; FTC eliminated WHC Buducnost BEMAX in the play-offs
• the match will mark FTC's 11th quarter-final appearance in their 23rd EHF Champions League Women season
• the French powerhouse are on a nine-game winning streak – their last defeat was in October 2022 against Team Esbjerg
• Bruna de Paula is Metz’s top scorer in the competition with 77 goals; Katrin Klujber is the third-best scorer of the competition, netting100 times and assisting 50 times for FTC
• this will be the 11th time these two sides meet - five wins are on the Hungarian side, Metz won on four occasions and there was one draw
• FTC won the Hungarian cup last weekend by beating Györ 28:27 in the final; Metz beat Celles-sur-Belles 40:20 to wrap up 25th French league title

Odense Håndbold (DEN) vs Györi Audi ETO KC (HUN)
Saturday 29 April, 18:00 CEST, live on EHFTV

• the Danish side are back in the quarter-finals since their debut in the 2018/19 season, when they lost 62:49 on aggregate against the same opponents, Györ
• Odense have not beaten Györ in six previous meetings, though they earned a draw once – 32:32 in the 2020/2021 season
• Odense eliminated Storhamar Håndball Elite in the play-offs; Györ secured a direct spot in the quarter-finals after finishing second in group B
• conceding 24.78 goals per match, Györ have the best defence in the competition
• Odense is likely without top scorer Mie Højlund, who suffers from back problems
• Györ lost the Hungarian cup final against FTC last weekend; Odense Nykøbing 39:31 in the play-offs of the Danish league

CS Rapid Bucuresti (ROU) vs Vipers Kristiansand (NOR)
Sunday 30 April, 14:00 CEST, live on EHFTV

• Rapid are one of the four sides which are still unbeaten at home this season: a draw, followed by seven wins
• the reigning champions have the best attack of the competition, scoring 32.5 goals per game
• Vipers left back Markéta Jeřábková boast a 96-goal tally, the fourth-best in the competition
• Rapid’s goalkeeper, Ivana Kapitanovic, has the largest number of penalty saves: 13 out of 34 this season; no other goalkeeper has more saves per game than Vipers’ Kristine Lunde: 12.1
• the Sala Polivalenta in Bucharest was sold out in less than one hour for this match
• Vipers are aiming to secure their third consecutive berth for the EHF FINAL4, having won the previous two titles; they did not lost a quarter-final match in the last two seasons

Team Esbjerg (DEN) vs CSM Bucuresti (ROU)
Sunday 30 April, 16:00 CEST, live on EHFTV

• last season, the two sides also collided in the quarter-finals, with Esbjerg taking a narrow 53:52 aggregate win
• Esbjerg have won seven home games and lost one – against Györ
• the top two scorers of this season meet in this tie: Esbjerg’s Henny Reistad (121 goals) and CSM’s Cristina Neagu (105)
• Esbjerg have the second-best attack of the competition so far, with an average of 31.8 scored goals per game; CSM’s attack is averaging 31.3 goals per game
• only one team, Metz Handball, has conceded fewer losses in away games this season than CSM, who had five wins in seven away games

photos © 2023 Terje Refsnes; sabin@fastmedia.ro; Szilvia Micheller