Nøddesbo enjoys Spanish adventure

Less than two weeks after the successful European Champion, Jesper Nøddesbo was back in Denmark – this time with his club FC Barcelona. The 27-year old pivot and the other Euro gold winner in the Spanish team, goalkeeper Kasper Hvidt, were received with lots of applause in Odense’s Idrætshal before the Champions League match against GOG Svendborg TGI.

A couple of hours later, however, they left the hall with much less positive feelings – just as the entire Spanish delegation. Barcelona suffered a sensational 35-33 defeat in the first match of the Main Round. Eurohandball.com talked to Nøddesbo.

Eurohandball.com: A fortnight ago you were received in Denmark as a hero. What was it like for you to be back in your country and lose?

Jesper Nøddesbo: First of all, I would say that I enjoyed being here in Denmark very much. Of course, leaving with a defeat was not exactly what I expected.

Eurohandball.com: Can you explain what happened in the hectic ending of the match when you lost a 7-goal lead and lost by 2 goals?

Jesper Nøddesbo: It is a bit difficult to explain what actually went wrong. It all happened very fast. We missed some shots in a ‘stupid way’ and GOG were very good at punishing us for that with fast goals on counter-attacks. Basically, that was it.

Eurohandball.com: Did you and your team-mates underestimate GOG when you were leading by 7 goals?

Jesper Nøddesbo: I do not think that we underestimated them and I really think that we did very well for about the first 45 minutes. Then you might say that we slowed down a bit and the result of that was embarrassing.

Eurohandball.com: What does this defeat mean regarding chances?

Jesper Nøddesbo: I don’t know. If only we win the rest of our matches, that should be enough.

Eurohandball.com: Eight months ago you left Danish top team KIF Kolding for Barcelona. What was it like for you so far?

Jesper Nøddesbo: I think this change was very positive for me. It has given me a lot of new experience, and hopefully it will give some more in the future. The first half year was very positive and I met a lot of nice people in and around the club. I had to get used to their way of playing handball, though, but all in all, everything is fine.

Eurohandball.com: What was the most difficult to get used to?

Jesper Nøddesbo: The language.

Eurohandball.com: What about handball?

Jesper Nøddesbo: I have to say that they tend to play a little more individually in Spain than I got used to in Denmark and that was a bit difficult for me.

Eurohandball.com: FC Barcelona is traditionally one of the top clubs in Europe and everyone expects them to perform well all the time. Is that a pressure for a new player like you?

Jesper Nøddesbo: Of course, there is pressure on me, but I do not feel it so much after all. This pressure in Barcelona is mainly on the football players and not so much on us handballers. However, when you wear the Barcelona shirt, you have to perform well. That is what everybody expects from you...