20:33
Gorenje with their win now keep their hopes alive for the time being. They will be hoping that PAUC can snatch a point from La Rioja. If so Gorenje will be in the Last 16.
20:26
So with that AEK will now not make it to the Last 16 and Pelister are now confirmed second in group D. This means that now Sporting and Kadetten are sure of Last 16 spots but just the finishing order is up for grabs.
20:19
RESULTS
Eurofarm Pelister 30:19 AEK Athens
TBV Lemgo Lippe 39:35 GOG
Pfadi Winterthur 27:31 TATRAN Presov
IK Sävehof 27:28 RK Gorenje
Fenix Toulouse Handball 26:26 Bidasoa Irun
20:16
WOW! Gorenje leave it SUPER late but squeeze a one-goal win off the Sävehof youngsters. They were down since the score read 18:17 to them, but they stuck in there and in the last 5 minutes they had some luck. Two seperate two-minute suspensions to Pontus Brolin (55 & 58th minute) hurt the Sävehof efforts.
19:57
Gorenje are still struggling against Sävehof. And all that versus a Sävehof side which have many of their big names sitting out. 25:21 to Sävehof.
19:51
Not looking good for AEK at the opening of this second half. They are six down now after a 4:0 run by Pelister.
19:25
Massive tension in the Pelister vs Athens, the last 5 minutes of the half took so long to get done with all the stopping and starting. Tensions were almost boiling over at points. Feels like a real cup final. Pelister will be happy with the two-goal lead while AEK will be fighting for survival in the second half. Not looking good for Gorenje who need a win to stay alive.
19:23
HALF-TIME:
Eurofarm Pelister 10:8 AEK Athens
TBV Lemgo Lippe 19:17 GOG
Pfadi Winterthur 12:14 TATRAN Presov
IK Sävehof 14:11 RK Gorenje
Fenix Toulouse Handball 13:12 Bidasoa Irun
19:08
Example A...
19:04
If you are watching Eurofarm Pelister vs AEK Athens you will see it is all about the goalkeepers so far. Both men pulling off some big saves. Boukovinas for AEK is on 6 saves from 11 (54%) while Hungarian international Székely is on 50% with his four saves.
18:45
Join us now on EHFTV.com for tonight's action!
18:35
State of affairs for 18:45 (CET) throw-offs:
Eurofarm Pelister (MKD) vs AEK Athens (GRE)
- All or nothing for AEK; Pelister could face Magdeburg, Sävehof or Nexe depending on the results.
TBV Lemgo Lippe vs GOG
- Both are already in the Last 16
Pfadi Winterthur vs TATRAN Presov
- Both teams are out
IK Sävehof vs RK Gorenje
- Sävehof fixed Last 16 spot; all or nothing game for Velenje. To progress to the Last 16 they need a win and for La Rioja to drop at least a point against PAUC
Fenix Toulouse Handball vs Bidasoa Irun
- Fixed Last 16 spots
18:29
Kadetten Schaffhausen can finish as high as second place in group D but can also be eliminated, so their star his the nail on the head here... Their match against Tatabanya who cannot progress is up at 20:45 (CET).
18:05
Just over 40 minutes to go until we throw-off tonight's action. We of course will be keeping an eye on all the games that have a Last 16 ticket at stake but a big focus will be on HC Eurofarm Pelister and AEK Athens at 18:45 CET. It has all the makings of a classic and can have a ripple effect throughout the whole evening depending on an Athens win.
16:55
In case you're a visual sort of person and want to see which teams have definitely confirmed where they'll finish in the group phase, and which will find out tonight, this is the roadmap for the EHF Finals, which will take place at the end of May.
16:40
Possibly the most important game tonight is between HC Eurofarm Pelister and AEK Athens at 18:45 CET. Athens are fifth in group D, but a win would see them through to the last 16, and put pressure on Kadetten Schaffhausen and Sporting CP who play later on.
Ahead of the match, EHF journalist Adrian Costeiu caught up with Athens line player Ignacio Plaza, who tells us how he has found a second home in Greece. It's well worth a read before tonight's action throws off.