Kiel overcome Elverum in tougher task than expected
For the first time since 18 October 2014, when THW Kiel beat Metalurg Skopje 42:28 in an EHF Champions League group match, Kiel scored more than 40 goals in a match in Europe's top flight.
Thanks to their second win in two matches (41:36), the German champions are level with Aalborg at the top of group A. Elverum played at an equal level for more than 40 minutes and gave Kiel a great fight – but remain on the one point that they earned against Vardar in their opener.
GROUP A
THW Kiel (GER) vs Elverum Handball (NOR) 41:36 (20:20)
- Elverum surprised THW with an extremely strong initial period. The Norwegian side's counter attack goals were the reason why they led 4:1 and 7:4
- it took Kiel 16 minutes to take their first lead – 12:11 – after three consecutive goals
- the visitors never led after the break, but the match remained open until THW established a 32:30 advantage in the 48th minute. The German side then used their speed to pull clear
- with seven goals each, Harald Reinkind (Kiel) and Eric Johansson (Elverum) were the top scorers
- the total number of goals (77) underlines the exceptional attacking efficiency of both sides: Kiel's attack efficiency was 75 per cent, while Elverum's was 65 per cent
- both sides have away matches ahead in the next round: Elverum travel to Zagreb, while Kiel face former Champions League winners Montpellier in France
Left-handed aces decide the match
Usually, when a left-handed player is the top scorer for THW Kiel, it is Swedish right wing Niclas Ekberg. Last week, Ekberg netted 11 times in Kiel's 33:30 victory at Meshkov Brest.
Against Elverum, while Ekberg only scored twice, left-handed players were again at the top of the list. Right backs Steffen Weinhold (six goals) and Harald Reinkind (seven goals) had strong performances in a high-scoring match.
I’m not as satisfied as Börge (Lund) seems to be. At the end of the second half, we had to put everything in to win these two points. The young guns of Elverum ran a lot and pushed us really hard in our defence. And we did not respond in a way I would have wished for. It was a tough match for us. Now the job is done, but we have to learn from this match and try to develop our play.
It was a good game from us with our young players and a new experience in this cathedral of handball. We succeed in offence but we made too many mistakes. In the second half, we let Kiel play with their wing players. It was a tough day for our defence. But we all should be proud of our performance. It was a big step for us in the way we want to present ourselves this season.
