03.10.2007, 10:45
Veszprém to take lost point back

Coach Lajos Mocsai tells us how important the point lost against Celje can be. Veszprém will try to make up for it in Kölnarena.

Veszprém to take lost point back

MKB Veszprém lost a point on home court against Slovenian Celje in Round 1 of Group F. New coach of the Hungarian side, Lajos Mocsai, told Eurohandball.com that difficult it may be, but they will try to make up for the lost point at the away game in Gummersbach.

Eurohandball.com: What does it feel to coach one of the most prestigious men’s teams of Europe after the women’s team of Vasas?

Lajos Mocsai: It is important to know that I was coaching teams of a similar level for a long time in the Bundesliga and in the Hungarian national team as well. The invitation of Veszprém was a great honour and I enjoy this work a lot. Our prime target is to create unity and improve the team tactically. This will take from 6 to 12 months at least. The club itself is a household name in the world of handball, now we have to build a team.

Eurohandball.com: The first game was against Celje that took a point home from Hungary. What does it mean for you?

Lajos Mocsai: This is pure mathematics: whoever cannot collect the two points at home gets one step behind. The CL winner of 2004 has high class players in more positions than us. This result may influence the outcome of the whole group at the end.

Eurohandball.com: In 2005 – though for a couple of months only – you were the coach of Gummersbach. Is it an advantage for you now?

Lajos Mocsai: The team has been completely changed ever since, so we are not wiser now. Right now, we are analysing their game against Flensburg.

The environment will be unusual for us: the venue will be the sports hall of the World Championship Final, Kölnarena. In this vast space, handball gets new dimensions. We will try to surprise Gummersbach with a quick and organised play and we will try to get the lost point back.

TEXT: handball.hu (Ildikó Balogh)