16.11.2018, 09:00
Danish international Møllgaard to miss game against Füchse

ROUND PREVIEW: Key Aalborg player Henrik Møllgaard will miss a meeting with his Danish national teammate Hans Lindberg when the third and last round of qualification for the Men’s EHF Group Phase launches this weekend.

Danish international to miss game against Füchse

d Former Danish champions Aalborg Handball will be without one of their most important key players when they take on defending champions Füchse Berlin in the first leg of Qualification Round 3 for the group phase of the Men’s EHF Cup on Saturday afternoon.

Danish international Henrik Møllgaard twisted his knee in a league game on Monday, and the experienced back-court player will therefore miss the meeting with his Denmark teammate, Füchse right wing Hans Lindberg.

“The injury was not as bad as I feared, but it is hard to say how long it will take as I have never had an injury like this before. However, it is a fact that I am going to miss the game on Saturday,” said Møllgaard. The match in Jutlander Bank Arena, Aalborg will be streamed live on ehftv.com.

Record attendance to be broken

Though between 4,500 and 5,000 spectators are expected for the match in Aalborg, even that will not be a record for a game in the third qualification round of the EHF Cup. The record remains 6,009, from the match between Füchse and HBC Nantes in the 2014/15 season, but that record may very well be due to fall Sunday afternoon.

THW Kiel, whom we are used to seeing in the VELUX EHF Champions League but are playing in the EHF Cup this season, are hosting Drammen HK from Norway, and considering the usual attendances in Sparkassen Arena, there is every reason to expect a new all-time high.

Although Kiel have been a regular subscriber to the Champions League for many years, the EHF Cup is not totally new to them. In fact, they have won the competition three times – but their latest win dates as far back as 2004. Those who are not in the arena on Sunday can watch the match live on ehftv.com instead.

Just like THW Kiel, TSV Hannover-Burgdorf have contested the EHF Cup before, but only once. In the 2013/14 season, “Die Recken” qualified for the group phase.

Aiming to do better this season, the north German side led by Spanish head coach Carlos Ortega are taking on SL Benfica from Portugal in a direct encounter for a group phase ticket. The first leg will be played in the Swiss Life Hall in Hannover on Saturday and will be live on ehftv.com.

Saint-Raphael chase new glory

Saint-Raphael Var Handball have reached the Men’s EHF Cup Finals for the past two years. Once again, the French side are chasing a position among the last four teams in the competition, and they will be trying to take their first step in Israel.

After the Women’s Challenge Cup match between Maccabi Srugo Rishon Lezion and Turkish side Polatli Belediyespor, Saint-Raphael will enter the Beit Maccabi Sport Centre to play the first leg against the Maccabi Srugo Rishon Lezion men’s team. This match will also be live on ehfv.com.

Another club experienced in the EHF Cup Finals is Fraikin BM. Granollers. The Spanish side have even won the competition, but that was as far back as 1995 and 1996 – and long before the competition was played in the present format.

On Sunday evening, Granollers are entering this season’s edition of the EHF Cup, obviously with the hope of another group phase berth. The hurdle they will have overcome to achieve this comes from Slovenia, in the form of RK Gorenje Velenje. The match in the Palau d’Esports de Granollers will be live on ehftv.com.

TEXT: Peter Bruun / cg