"Little things will decide"

Two weeks ago he drew the lots for the qualification of the EHF EURO 2012 in Serbia, next Sunday he wants to reach the EHF FINAL4 with his club THW Kiel: Momir Ilić talks about the Zebras’ chances after the 29:28 away victory at the Rhein-Neckar Löwen in the first leg of the quarterfinals.

eurohandball.com: Does the Kiel victory in Mannheim mean that you are halfway through to the EHF FINAL4?

Momir Ilić: No, no, no! Nothing is decided before the second leg. But we know that it is now up to ourselves to reach the EHF FINAL4 by playing a strong second leg match in Kiel.

eurohandball.com: Can the one goal difference be enough?

Momir Ilić: No, as we didn’t reach a good result in Mannheim. We were four goals ahead of the Löwen and didn’t manage to keep them on distance. This will not be enough if we don’t give 100 percent in Kiel. Of course the upcoming match will be a very tough game, like the one in Mannheim. My guess is that little things will decide, which team wins and which one loses.

eurohandball.com: What are the "little things" THW need to improve?

Momir Ilić: We missed out way too many chances and also lost too many balls in offense. So we need to increase our efficiency. On Sunday we did not play an optimal match at all. One exception: our goalkeeper Thierry Omeyer showed a brilliant performance, he saved the victory. When we are in lead again in the second leg, we can’t allow the Löwen to fight back resultwise like in the first game. We cannot give such a lead from our hands again.

eurohandball.com: But despite your cautious optimism THW is only one little step away from the EHF FINAL4. What does this tournament in Cologne mean to you?

Momir Ilić: It’s great! The EHF FINAL4 is something very special, something every handball player wants to achieve. Already before the beginning of the season it was our clear objective to be part of this ‘final destination’ Cologne. We want to go there and I hope we can reach the objective.

Visit ehfFINAL4.com