Vardar with best attack and Györ top fan base list

The best attack, the weakest defence, the highest number of goals and fans per match and in total - ehfCL.com has analysed the group matches of the Women’s EHF Champions League and has composed a selection of the most important facts and figures of this stage.

0 teams have finished the group matches with a clear record of six victories from six matches. The only unbeaten side is Vardar (five wins, one draw).

1 team made it from qualification to main round: Krim Mercator (SLO); Leipzig (GER) and Glassverket (NOR) both failed.

1 team starts their main round campaign with zero points on their account: Russian champions Astrachanochka.

1 team failed to win a single point in the group phase: Norwegian debutants Glassverket.

1 of 48 group matches ended in a draw - right the opener of this stage, Vardar vs FTC (27:27).

2 Champions League debutants made it to the main round: Astrachanocka and Esbjerg.

2 points (from the win against Leipzig) in six matches were enough for Astrachanochka to book a ticket for the main round. On the other hand, Sävehof failed to proceed with four points on their account.

2 nations are represented by two teams in the main round: Hungary (Györ, FTC) and Denmark (Esbjerg and Midtjylland, they will even face in main round Group 2).

2 group matches ended with 40 goals in total to be the lowest scoring games, and both occurred in the first round of Group A: the 21:19 between Buducnost and Metz and the 24:16 between Thüringer HC and Glassverket.

2 coaches of FINAL4 2016 teams lost their job during the group matches: Indira Kastratovic (Vardar) and Jakob Vestergaard (Bucurest).

4 - which means all - participants of the 2016 EHF FINAL4 are still part of the competition: Bucurest, Györ, Vardar and Buducnost.

4 goals scored in one half is the worst scoring record in all the matches, when Glassverket were down by 4:10 at their opener at Thüringer HC. The Norwegians finally lost by 16:24, the lowest score from a team over 60 minutes.

5 former or current Champions League winners are part of the main round: Bucurest (2016), Györ (2013, 2014), Buducnost (2012, 2015), Larvik (2011) and Krim (2001, 2003). Four of them (Györ, Krim, Larvik, Bucuresti) face in the same main round group.

8 teams, which had been part of the 2015/16 main round are again part of this competition stage: Vardar, Thüringer HC, Györ, Buducnost, Larvik, FTC, FC Midtjylland, Bucurest.

10 group matches ended with an overall of 60 goals and more, topped by 70 goals in the match Sävehof vs Larvik (32:38).  

10 different nations are represented by the 12 main round participants, the same number as last season. The only change: Sweden is out, Slovenia is in.

18 matches were attended by 3000 or more spectators -- eight of them in Group C -- where Györ and Bucurest were the true fan magnets.

8 group matches ended with a goal difference of ten or more goals. The biggest margin in one match was 23 goals, when Vardar won at Leipzig 45:22.

30 times the home teams took the victory.

17 away victories were among those 48 group matches.

40 goals was the overall difference of the pairing Vardar vs Leipzig (45:22 and 41:24)

47 goals were scored by Linn-Kristin Riegelhuth-Koren (Larvik) to top the top scorers’ list after the group matches, followed by Karina Sabirova (Astrachanocka/42) and Anne Hubinger (Leipzig/36).

48 main round matches are ahead to decide the eight participants of the quarter-finals.

+72 goals is the best overall goal difference of all teams – gained by Vardar, being 45 goals ahead of the runners-up Györ (+27).

128 goals were scored by Glassverket to have the weakest attack of all 16 participants.

133 goals were conceded by Metz to have the best defence of all participants.

196 goals were conceded by Leipzig to have the weakest defence of all participants.

220 goals were scored by Vardar to have the best attack of all 16 participants.

2,515 goals were scored in the group matches, an average of 52,39 per match - which is nearly the same number of the 2015/16 season (2,517). The fans in Group B including top attackers Vardar saw 687 goals, while in Group A with the defence kings Metz and Buducnost only 580 goals were scored. 655 goals were scored in Group D, 593 in Group C.

5,129 spectators in average attended Györ’s home matches, which means an overall of 15,387.

5,207 spectators saw the match Györ vs Rostov to be the peak in terms of fans.

10,125 fans saw the two re-matches of 2016 finals in the group stage at Györ (5,162) and Bucurest (4,963)

The top 3 of the group phase:

Best attack:
220 goals: Vardar
174 goals: Györ, Larvik
172 goals: FTC

Weakest attack:
128 goals: Glassverket
135 goals: FC Midtjylland
139 goals: Leipzig

Best defence:
133 goals conceded: Metz
136 goals conceded: Buducnost
145 goals conceded: Bucurest

Weakest defence:
196 goals conceded: Leipzig
189 goals conceded: Astrachanocka
170 goals conceded: Larvik, Sävehof

Best overall goal difference after the group matches:
+72 goals: Vardar
+27 goals: Györ
+22 goals: Buducnost

Highest number of goals in a single match:
70 goals: Sävehof - Larvik 32:38
67 goals: Leipzig - Vardar 22:45
67 goals: Larvik - Krim 31:36

Lowest number of goals in a single match:
40 goals: Buducnost - Metz 21:19
40 goals: Thüringer HC - Glassverket 24:16
42 goals: Rostov - Bucuresti 20:22 15:25

Biggest gaps:
+23 goals: Leipzig - Vardar 22:45
+17 goals: Vardar - Leipzig 41:24
+14 goals: Vardar - Astrachanocka 39:25

The best home teams:
6:0 points: Buducnost, Krim, Györ, Midtjylland
5:1 points: Vardar

The best away teams:
6:0 points: Vardar
5:1 points: FTC

Spectators:
5,207: Györ - Rostov
5,162: Györ - Bucuresti
5,017: Györ - Midtjylland

Top scorers:
45 goals: Linn-Kristin Riegelhuth-Koren (Larvik)
42 goals: Karina Sabirova (Astrachanocka)
36 goals: Anne Hubinger (Leipzig)