Line-up for EHF European Cup Men Last 16 set in thrilling weekend

Czechia will be represented by three teams in the Last 16, the most of any federation in the competition. SKKP Handball Brno earned their spot in the next round by defeating Luxembourg’s HC Berchem 54:49 on aggregate after 120 minutes of intense action. HCB Karvina comfortably beat Sparkasse Schwaz Handball Tirol with a 76:65 score overall, despite losing the second leg by seven goals. HC Dukla Praha completed the trio by beating Bianco Monte Drama 1986 from Greece, 58:50 on aggregate.

• Turkish handball celebrates a historic milestone, as for the first time in the history of the competition and its predecessors, two teams from Türkiye qualify for the Last 16; Nilüfer BSK converted their six-goal advantage by drawing the return leg 34:34 at HB Red Boys Differdange in Luxembourg; Besiktas JK rescue a one-goal advantage on aggregate (55:54), after losing against A.C. PAOK 29:25 in Greece; Besiktas were even down by six goals after 42 minutes, but managed to close the gap in the last quarter of the match
• GRK Ohrid took the biggest aggregate win of the round for the second consecutive time — after beating HC Baki 82:32 on aggregate in round 2, the side from North Macedonia beat MRK Sloga Doboj 79:37, while conceding less than 20 goals per match; goalkeeper Kristian Pilipovic recently joined Ohrid from Kadetten Schaffhausen and made 14 saves for a 58.33 per cent efficiency in the return leg
• BK-46 were able to turn a one-goal deficit against Pölva Serviti into a three-goal victory on aggregate, winning the return leg on home soil 31:27; the Finnish side was more efficient in defence compared to Pölva, boasting a 63 per cent efficiency compared to 50 per cent, relying on a 14-save performance by goalkeeper Mikael Heinonen; Miska Henriksson scored 13 goals across both matches, making him BK-46’s top scorer
• HB Dudelange delivered two strong performances against last season’s semi-finalists HC Izvidac; however, the side from Bosnia and Herzegovina proved too strong after 120 minutes, winning 61:56 on aggregate; left back David Ojié Etute netted 20 goals across both matches for Dudelange
• a 40-goal performance was not enough for Sparkasse Schwaz Handball Tirol; the Austrian side beat HCB Karvina 40:33 on home soil, but had lost the first leg by 18 goals last week; HC Fivers WAT Margareten needed to erase a three-goal deficit away against Balatonfüredi KSE, but were not successful, as the Hungarian hosts were in control of the scoreboard throughout the entire match and beat the Austrian side 66:60 on aggregate

Celje make exciting comeback

After losing the first leg away to HC Vojvodina 34:32, RK Celje Pivovarna Laško had to mount a comeback in the second leg at home. The match between the EHF European Cup 2022/23 champions from Serbia and the EHF Champions League 2003/04 winners from Slovenia was even throughout the first 30 minutes. Just before the half-time buzzer, Celje were able to create a three-goal gap (16:13), simultaneously giving them the lead on aggregate.

In the second half, the guests from Serbia were able to maintain a one- or two-goal lead. Celje’s Luka Peric managed to score the last goal of regular time with seven seconds left on the clock. The result after 60 minutes was 34:32, just like last week, but Celje kept their cool in the penalty shootout, scoring on all three tries, while Vojvodina missed their triple of shots to send the Slovenian side to the Last 16.

Photos © Balatonfüredi KSE/Szente Benjámin (main), HB Dudelange/Ern Ferrari (in-text)