 “We will travel to Larvik to win,” says Kovacsics
Györi Audi ETO KC are heading to their second consecutive Women’s EHF Champions League Final and their third in just five seasons.
The Hungarian club have yet to go all the way in the competition, or any European Cup competition for that matter, meaning the pressure is on to deliver this time around.
However, the club have been in exceptional form throughout the season and will be seen as slight favourites for the title this time around.
Ahead of the first leg against Larvik in Norway, Anikó Kovacsics says that she and her teammates are under no illusions as to the difficulty of the task.
“It will be a very hard fight for sure; we have to use our maximum power in both matches.
“We will travel to Larvik to win. Now we are only focusing on the first match and not calculating for the return clash, so I hope we can win on Sunday,” the 21-year-old told kisalfold.hu.
The sides have already met twice in this season’s competition, with Györ coming out on top by six goals both home and away and Györ are hoping for a repeat.
“Both teams know each other perfectly well, as we have already met this season. That time we already analysed them, so now we have refreshed these tactics, because their play hasn't changed a lot.
“I guess they are thinking about the same about us. It will be a real fight tactically, physically and at all points,” said Kovacsics.
The centre back highlights the defence as a crucial aspect of the matches.
“The most important thing for us is to really concentrate on our defence. It has generally worked, because this season we almost always concede less than 30 goals on a match.
“We are preparing with a really solid defence again, even though we know Larvik also has an excellent defence system. I guess tiny differences will decide who's going to win the trophy,” admits Kovacsics.
Top scorer in last season’s competition, Anita Görbicz, feels that the past results will not be an issue in the final.
“I expect a very hard match, especially in Larvik. But of course it won't even be easy in Veszprém.
“A final is a very different situation to our earlier matches when we beat the Norwegians twice. I really believe our preparation is important. Our defence will be the key, it should be really aggressive.
“I saw Larvik's semi-final against Krim. I hadn't seen this perfect defence from them until now. I'm sure they will also provide their best in the final. I guess the team who can defend better is going to win and we also have to look to their counter attacks,” concluded Görbicz.
Further information
The Women’s EHF Champions League final first leg between Larvik and Györ takes place on Sunday, 5 May at 16:45 CET and will be live on ehfTV.com.
TEXT: Balogh Ildikó / cor
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