Branko Tamse becomes new Celje head coach

Just 48 hours after head coach Vladan Matic and VELUX EHF Champions League participants, Celje Pivovarna Lasko, had parted ways, the Slovenian side has found a successor.

Slovenian Branko Tamse, who has been coaching Celje's youth team for the past two months, will take over at the team's helm.

"I believe this is a very tempting place for many coaches in Slovenia, and I feel honoured the club offered it to me," Tamse was quoted on the club's website.

"At the same time I have to say that when I came to the club two months ago it was not my goal to become the senior team's coach by December.

"I'm friends with Vladan Matic and he's the one to blame for the fact that I joined Celje. But the situation is as it is, and the past cannot be changed.

"My job is now trying to maximise the team's performance as only training, training and even more training will lead us to what we all want to achieve.

"The path will not be easy, but we have to be optimistic and train a lot."

After missing out on the past two national championship titles, Celje currently again sit on second position in the Slovenian domestic league, three points behind rivals RK Gorenje Velenje, who triumphed in the domestic league in 2012 and 2013.

Celje lost the last match against Velenje 29:30 on 4 December.

It is arguably an interesting turn of fate that it was Tamse who led Velenje to domestic victory in 2012 and 2013. Now he has been given the task to bring Celje back to the top.

In the VELUX EHF Champions League Celje (in Group A) and Velenje (in Group D) have six points each. Both teams sit in fourth place after seven of ten rounds have been played.