Handball festival, not revenge

Exactly 158 days after meeting for the last time, the handball titans Hamburg and Ciudad Real will clash again. They met twice so far in 2008 and 2009 – on both occasions in the CL semi-finals. All four matches were full of tension. Ciudad Real were the lucky ones to qualfy twice and they marched on to win the CL titles as well.

Now this will “only” be a group match on Wednesday. HSV coach Martin Schwalb talks to Eurohandball.com about his expectation and the chances.

Eurohandball.com: Hamburg failed twice against Ciudad Real. Do you think of revenge?

Schwalb: You asked the question about revenge before the semi-final last season as well. Now I say the same thing: we don’t think about revenge at all. The only objective is to take two points against a world class team in order to have a good basis in the first stage of the competition. But it’s an interesting pairing to meet the title holders already in the group phase.

Eurohandball.com: Your team started well. You are unbeaten in Bundesliga and in the Champions League. Are you full of confidence?

Schwalb: We are not careless and we always concentrate on the match to come. Anything else would be dangerous, especially when you meet Ciudad Real.

Eurohandball.com: How important is the support of the spectators this time?

Schwalb: Their support is always important. But you are right! Spectators enjoy this “handball delicacy” as they have seen our last matches against Ciudad Real. Those matches were real handball festivals. I believe will have another festival on Wednesday.

Eurohandball.com: HSV or Ciudad Real – who is the favourite for winning the group?

Schwalb: If I have to name a favourite, it’s Ciudad Real. They are the title holders after all. But the group phase has just started and will be very long. Ten matches still have to be played. In the end we will know how it worked out for us.

Eurohandball.com: Before the start of the season experts predicted a weaker Ciudad Real than last season. Do you agree?

Schwalb: No, this team has changed a bit, but they still have an outstanding squad. Look at their victory against Barcelona in the Liga Asobal! They’re again on top of the ranking in Spain.

Eurohandball.com: What would be an ideal result for you on Wednesday?

Schwalb: I would be a liar not to say that we would like to win – like every match…