The goalkeeper is one of the most crucial positions in handball, one that can change the outcome of the game singlehandedly whenever they get into the groove.
“A goalkeeper can impact up to 50 to 60 per cent of the result of a game, if one has a very good day. The defence is crucial, because they can help you, they can really stop the opponent. But there are instances when a goalkeeper starts saving one-on-one shots and then the balance is tilted,” says Kapitanovic.
Indeed, when Kim Rasmussen took over Rapid in early March, he identified the goalkeeping department as a very important one for the Romanian side for the rest of the campaign in the EHF Champions League Women. And Kapitanovic duly delivered this season.
No one has more penalty saves than the 28-year-old Croatia goalkeeper, who has stopped 13 seven-metre throws from 34 shots, for an outstanding 38.2 per cent. But are penalty saves something that can be trained?
“I usually go with the flow. Of course, we work on this, we try to predict what is going to happen through video analysis, but it is also down to intuition and experience,” says Kapitanovic.
“I am also quite tall, 1.83m, and I can cover the goal very good, which of course is a plus for me.”
Kapitanovic also ranks eighth in the total number of saves made this season, 127 in 16 games, for an average of 31.7 per cent. That makes her clearly the first choice for Rapid.
She is also one of the reasons Rapid reached the Champions League quarter-finals, with her experience and performance helping the Romanian side secure excellent results. It speaks volumes that Rapid are still unbeaten on home court this season, winning seven games and drawing one against Metz, Kapitanovic’s former team.
Györi Audi ETO KC, Team Esbjerg and Krim Mercator Ljubljana all tried to down Rapid in Bucharest and they went home empty-handed. Krim were eliminated in the play-offs, as Rapid erased a five-goal deficit from the first leg to clinch a 30:24 win that enabled them to qualify for the quarter-finals.
“Well, we are a true powerhouse at home, because of the atmosphere there. Playing with 5,000 fans behind you is always an amazing feeling and it really helps, it enhances everything, it makes everything feel better. The support is nothing short of superb,” says Kapitanovic.
“It is difficult to win in Bucharest, it is a tough proposition for any team, like we have proven time and time again. On away courts we can improve; I can point to the game against Buducnost, where we drew in the group phase, that point would have been important, but now we have to face Vipers in the quarter-finals.”
