Bičanić: "We can beat any team"
ehfcl.com talked to Chambery's left back Damir Bičanić about his great performances in Chambery and in the Croatian national team, about the growing French league and the upcoming Last 16 match against Ciudad Real in the VELUX EHF Men's Champions League.
ehfcl.com: At the beginning of the season you arrived to Chambery from Ademar Leon. After an adaptation period you exploded just in the right time for your team.
Damir Bičanić: It is true, in the beginning of the season I needed some time to adjust to the new country, the new language and the completely different style of playing. Fortunately, this period did not last for long. I played good last matches, especially the most important match against Rhein-Neckar Löwen.
ehfcl.com: How does the French league differ from the Spanish league?
Damir Bičanić: The French league is a lot tougher, more physically demanding than the Spanish league, where attention is rather given to tactics than to physical force. Unfortunately the Spanish league is in decline, so I believe that it could be soon overtaken by the French League qualitywise. After all, the French league employs the greatest number of World Champions, European Champions and Olympic gold medallists.
ehfcl.com: The French league also has two teams in Last 16 of the VELUX EHF Champions League. What is Chambery's situation in the French league?
Damir Bičanić: Chambery is currently in an excellent position. We achieved 16 victories in 16 games and we are two points ahead of our main competitors Montpellier. The objective is to keep the two-point margin until round 24 when we will play in Montpellier. That will be a very interesting match.
ehfcl.com: After many seasons in the Spanish league you know your next opponent Ciudad Real and all of their players very well. Are you ready to surprise the Spaniards?
Damir Bičanić: First of all, we did a great job entering the Last 16 in the "Group of death". Further success beyond that could be seen as a top sensation, especially because our opponents are Ciudad Real. But we have proven that we play very strong at home. We can beat any team, so it will not be an easy task for Ciudad Real either.
ehfcl.com: In the EHF EURO 2012 Qualification matches against Spain almost two weeks ago you performed great. Croatia won both matches, away and home and you personely gave lot of trouble to Rivera’s team, especially in Ciudad Real. Can you repeat these performances in the VELUX EHF Champions League, too?
Damir Bičanić: It would be very nice to repeat my performance from the game in Ciudad Real, when I played for Croatia. And I would sincerely not complain if the result would be the same, too. I will give my best to help the team and to give Ciudad Real a really hard time.
The Last 16 clash between the current French league leaders and last year's VELUX EHF FINAL4 participants from Spain will be broadcast as a free-of-charge live web stream on ehfTV.com as our featured "Match of the Week", including English commentary of Tom O’Brannagain.
VELUX EHF Men’s Champions League, Last 16, First leg
Sunday, 27 March 2011, 17:00 hrs (local time)
Chambery Savioe HB (FRA) vs. Renovalia Ciudad Real (ESP)
ehfTV.com is the official Internet TV platform of the European Handball Federation and offers free live streaming as well as a video on demand service.
TEXT:
Ivan Ambroš