Four teams aim to remain perfect in round 3
The Match of the Week will see an unbeaten side, Rapid Bucuresti, take on HB Ludwigsburg, who are searching for the first win, while the classic between Györi Audi ETO KC and Vipers Kristiansand will see another episode in group B.
FTC-Rail Cargo Hungaria and Krim Mercator have a chance to remain the unbeaten sides in group A, but will have a hard time away against Storhamar Handball Elite and CS Gloria 2018 BN. On the other side, Podravka Vegeta and Nykøbing Falster Håndbold hope they will end their negative streaks, as they welcome CSM Bucuresti and Metz Handball on their home courts.
We meet one of the strongest teams in our group, Krim have players with great experience in the Champions League. We will definitely play with a full house and we want to fight confidently for our chance.
One of the most challenging away games of the season is upon us. Not just for us, but in general. Gloria are unpredictable, they have already shown outstanding performances and results. They have an outstanding team, without big names, but they have already beaten CS Rapid Bucuresti and CSM Bucuresti this year, which is a testament to their quality.
Bucharest are one of the best teams with 11, 12 internationals, high-rated players. We also know that one of the world's best handball players, Cristina Neagu, is there. It is a very demanding game, certainly in the same league as Ferencvaros and Krim. We will try to give and we will want to give our maximum, first of all to play well, and on the trail of such a game, to look for some points.
We meet a team with world-class players in all positions. It will be an incredibly tough match where FTC are big favourites. They have had a good start in the Champions League with two wins. We must dare to fight together the whole match. We have to be a little smarter than we were in our previous Champions League game against CSM.
I am sure that this is our biggest challenge of our season until now, of course I expect a really tough game. Storhamar already got two points from Vipers in their domestic league and in Champions League against Metz they showed that they deserve this place. We have already played a tough match in the Hungarian league against Mosonmagyaróvár, but I think this will be another level. But, all in all, of course, we would like to win in Norway as well.
We will do everything we can to get on the scoreboard in the EHF Champions League now. And I think the match against Metz Handball is the most manageable of the matches we have played so far. We have a chance against them at home, and we must chase that chance.
I think the game will be a difficult one. We saw on Sunday that if we aren't prepared to know our job and the basic things then we struggle and we can't let that happen. We can use the fact that we are playing at home and I hope to see a strong performance from my team.
We expect a tough match in Denmark, we know how Odense play. They have good transition and good players with good feints and it is difficult to guard them. We know what awaits us, we are preparing, but we will look to rely on our game.
Of course important players left Vipers, which can effect them, but also very good players signed there, so in my opinion they are still one of the most dangerous teams in the Champions League. I expect from this game a really fast handball from both sides, we have to be focused since the beginning until the last minute, because they can punish every small mistake. But I believe in our team and we have to show our character on the field and then we can keep the points at home!
It is an extremely tough away game, but I think, if we perform on the very best level that we know we can, that it is possible to get a result there. We have every chance of getting one or two points, of that I am absolutely certain.
It's going to be a real test after Vipers and Buducnost, with a team that reached the EHF FINAL4 last year. We're hoping to build on our momentum and our progress. We'll be looking for a win on Saturday.
A tough match is at hand. They have assembled a great team and they are stronger than last year. The first two matches in the Champions League have shown, they are one of the candidates to qualify to the EHF FINAL4.
The MOTW game against Ludwigsburg is going to be a tough one. However, we want to keep winning points at home and we will be ready for that. We have a lot of respect for them because they played the last final of the Champions League, they have very good players and they have a very good coach too. Then, we have to be ready, to keep playing as we did in the last matches and we have to be focused the whole game. For sure, our supporters will help us, they are very important for us.
