Andersson: Flensburg ready to fight

SG Flensburg-Handewitt’s Mattias Andersson was the best goalkeeper of the German bundesliga last season; now he is sitting at the top of the statistics again. The Swede has high hopes for his team to reach the VELUX EHF FINAL4 in Cologne despite their defeat in the first match of the Quarter-finals. ehfCL.com spoke to the 35-year-old ahead of the second match in Hamburg.

ehfCL.com: SG Flensburg-Handewitt lost their match last Sunday 26:32. Have you analysed the reasons for the defeat?

Mattias Andersson: Yes, of course we have. There are some areas we need to work on over the next few days and must improve.

ehfCL.com: What you can say about the mood in the team?

Mattias Andersson: The mood in the team is positive again now. We were very disappointed on Sunday night, of course. We had imagined the game completely different, but we won’t lay down and accept this result. We will stand up together in Hamburg and try to attack again.

ehfCL.com: In the semi-final of the German league, you won against Hamburg HSV with an excellent performance on their home court. Does it help, knowing you can win against this team in Hamburg?

Mattias Andersson: We have shown in the past that we can win on almost any court. We are on a fairly equal level with HSV. If Hamburg win with six goals against us, there is no reason that we cannot do the same to them. Of course, we haven’t given up hope, but it is very difficult – it is important that we play very well.

ehfCL.com: How extensive is a goalkeeper’s preparation for such a game?

Mattias Andersson: I prepare for this game just like for any other game. I focus on analysis and talk to the defence about where we made errors in the previous game and which areas we can improve.

ehfCL.com: So the time you spend preparing for this game isn’t any different from how you would prepare for other, less important games?

Mattias Andersson: I always have the same preparation. I need to – it is important to get me in the right mindset and be prepared for the upcoming game. You never know what can happen in 60 minutes.

Further information
Follow the match live and for free on ehfTV.com on Sunday at 18:30.