Three-way duel for two quarter-final spots

GROUP A

Aalborg Håndbold (DEN) vs HC PPD Zagreb (CRO)
Wednesday 9 March, 18:45 CET, live on EHFTV

• Aalborg have already secured their quarter-final spot, but still can finish top of the group if they win. If they tie, they are equal with Kiel on 21 points, but have lost the direct encounter
• by winning 33:31 in Montpellier last week, Aalborg extended their longest winning run to six matches
• Aalborg’s Swedish EHF EURO champion Felix Claar is currently top scorer of the competition with 75 goals
• Zagreb are currently equal with Elverum and lost the direct encounter against the Norwegian champions, therefore they need to take one point more than Elverum to proceed to the play-offs
• PPD were unlucky in the last two rounds, losing against both Kiel and Vardar by one goal

HC Vardar 1961 (MKD) vs Elverum Handball (NOR)

Wednesday 9 March, 20:45 CET, live on EHFTV

• thanks to six points from the last three matches (including against Brest by EHF decision), Vardar have qualified for the play-offs and will finish in fifth position regardless of all other results
• since David Davis took over as a coach, the Macedonian side are unbeaten in the Champions League, and come to this game knowing they have never lost to Elverum in three matches (one win, two draws)
• Elverum could finish on an equal number of points with Zagreb and make it to the play-offs, as they both have eight after round 13 – and they will know Zagreb’s result when they start
• Elverum have lost the last seven group matches, but can count on the fifth best Champions League scorer, Tobias Grøndahl (69 goals)
• the reverse fixture of this duel in round 1 ended in a 27:27 draw

Pick Szeged (HUN) vs Montpellier HB (FRA)
Thursday 10 March, 18:45 CET, live on EHFTV

• it is the duel for third place in this group; Montpellier (16 points) can pass Szeged (18), if they win, as the first game ended 29:29. The overall balance is equal with five victories each and two draws
• Montpellier have lost all three group matches in 2022 against Vardar, Kiel and Aalborg, losing their position at the top of the group
• Szeged have won three of the last four matches, for them a draw is already enough to remain in third position
• the top scorers of the two sides are Bence Banhidi (Szeged/61) and Julien Bos (Montpellier/55)
• in the French league, Montpellier took a convincing 31:18 win at Sedan on Sunday, while Szeged kept the top position in the Hungarian league with a 31:27 victory against Ferencvaros

GROUP B

Lomza Vive Kielce (POL) vs CS Dinamo Bucuresti (ROU)
Wednesday 09 March, 18:45 CET, live on EHFTV

• Kielce will secure one of the two top spots of the group if they win the game on Wednesday
• on the other hand, Dinamo are already out of the race for the play-off
• currently, Kielce are tied leaders of the group, with 18 points, while Dinamo are second last, with eight points
• Dinamo won the first confrontation between the two sides this season (32:29)
• last weekend, Kielce took the points in the Polish league against Chrobry Glogow (43:23)

Barça (ESP) vs SG Flensburg-Handewitt (GER)
Thursday 10 March, 18:45 CET, live on EHFTV

• Barça are in the same position as Kielce, as they need a win to progress to the quarter-finals, as they are currently tied in the top position with Kielce and Paris
• Flensburg have already secured their ticket for the play-offs, but they can move up one place if they manage to win in Spain on Thursday
• Barça won the game between the two clubs in round 1 (25:21)
• the German side have never managed to take a point in Palau Blaugrana in four games there
• last weekend, Barça defeated Granollers in the Liga Asobal (37:33), while Flensburg lost 24:25 in Leipzig in the Bundesliga

MOTW: Paris Saint-Germain HB (FRA) vs Telekom Veszprém (HUN)
Thursday 10 March, 20:45 CET, live on EHFTV

• Paris are currently tied leaders of the group with Barça and Kielce, all on 18 points
• if they want to progress directly to the quarter-finals, Paris must take the points on Thursday while hoping for a mistake from one of their direct opponents
• on the other hand, Veszprém are now certain of finishing fourth in the group
• since 2014, only once in five away games have Veszprém managed to win in Paris. Their last three trips to the Stade Coubertin resulted in a loss
• last weekend, Veszprém took the points in their domestic league against Veszprémi KKFT (37:33) while Paris won 33:27 in Chambéry