19.09.2018, 06:50
Momentous first victory on the line in Thun

MIDWEEK PREVIEW: Buric twins set to face off when Flensburg welcome Zagreb, while Wacker and Cocks are on the hunt for their first VELUX EHF Champions League win

Momentous first victory on the line in Thun

Both midweek matches in Round 2 of the VELUX EHF Champions League could turn out to be historic occasions as Zagreb head to Flensburg on Wednesday and Cocks visit Thun the next day.

Following their impressive away win against Nantes in Round 1, Flensburg will fancy their chances of adding two more points at home to Zagreb, a match which sees twin brothers playing against each other for the first time – Flensburg’s Benjamin Buric and Zagreb’s Senjamin Buric.

If either Wacker Thun or Riihimäen Cocks can earn a win in Thursday’s Group D encounter, it will be their first victory in Europe’s elite club competition, while a loss will already be a big setback in the chase for the group’s two play-off places.

GROUP B:

SG Flensburg-Handewitt (GER) - HC PPD Zagreb (CRO)
Wednesday, 19 September, 19:00 hrs local time, live on ehfTV.com

  • first meeting between the two teams since 2015, when Flensburg won both confrontations

  • teams had different turnouts on their first game: Zagreb lost at home against Szeged (24:23), Flensburg snatched two points in Nantes (34:31)

  • THW Kiel were the only team to win in the Flens-Arena last season, and Zagreb haven’t won an away match since September 2015 in Celje

  • Zagreb have lost all away matches against German opponents since a draw at Rhein-Neckar Löwen in 2011

GROUP D:

Wacker Thun (SUI) vs Riihimäen Cocks (FIN)
Thursday, 20 September, 20:00 hrs local time, live on ehfTV.com

  • both sides aiming to win their first match at this level

  • Riihimäki picked up a point in their debut last week (19:19 against Leon) but they scored just one goal in the final quarter and let a four-goal lead slip

  • Thun have gone 11 EHF Champions League matches without a win and their defence will need improving after conceding 34 against Plock on Sunday

TEXT: Kevin Domas, Chris O'Reilly / ew
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