Flensburg’s buzzer beater keeps race open

It will be the last of 14 rounds that decides which team finishes second in VELUX EHF Champions League Group B. After Kiel were defeated by Kielce on Saturday, remaining on 15 points, SG Flensburg-Handewitt and Telekom Veszprém drew in the ehfTV.com Match of the Week to push their respective tallies to 16.

Thus, all three teams keep their chances of finishing second. If Flensburg and Veszprém are still equal in the end, the Hungarian side will be ahead, as they win the direct encounter.

• For the fifth time in a row, Flensburg do not win against Veszprém. Sunday’s match is also the second straight time these teams have drawn in Germany
• SG have not tasted victory for four group matches
• Holger Glandorf is Flensburg’s hero, as the right back nets for the buzzer-beating draw
• Flensburg will face Aalborg in their last group match, while Veszprém host Celje

GROUP B
SG Flensburg-Handewitt (GER) vs Telekom Veszprém (HUN) 31:31 (16:16)

When Momir Ilic netted for the 31:29 with only 100 seconds to go, Veszprém seemed to be on the way to a win in Flensburg. But after a red card against Laszlo Nagy (three two-minute suspensions) and two goals, from Lasse Svan and Holger Glandorf – the latter of which came just two seconds before the final buzzer, SG took their second straight draw on home ground, following the 32:32 result against Kielce two weeks ago.

Flensburg’s fans gave their former coach Ljubomir Vranjes a warm welcome and a big hand, before being perfectly entertained in the ehfTV.com Match of the Week. In what was a crucial duel for second position, both sides gave it all. Flensburg were eager to end their dark series, as they did not win any of the last five matches against Veszprém.

A thriller from start to finish

Led by right back Glandorf and later Kentin Mahe, the Champions League 2013/14 winners had the better start, creating their one and only three-goal advantage at 9:6. Vranjes adapted his defensive tactics and Veszprém turned the tide thanks to a 6:2 series within nine minutes, which pulled them ahead 12:11.

Left wing Dejan Manaskov was on fire in Flens-Arena, surprising SG goalkeeper Mattias Andersson with some spectacular goals for the visitors before the break. After 30 minutes, the chances for both sides were equal again, as the score stood at a level 16:16.

The match was on edge until the very end, as neither team managed to cast their opponents off. Most of the time, it was the hosts who were ahead, before Veszprém turned a 26:28 deficit into a 30:26 advantage late in the game.

Finally, the double strike from Svan and Glandorf made the home fans happy, as their team secured a late draw.

Flensburg were led by four players who tallied five goals – Glandorf, Svan, Mahe and Hampus Wanne, while Dragan Gajic and Gasper Marguc netted five times each for Veszprém.