29.12.2020, 07:45
Paris take third place in lopsided match

PLACEMENT MATCH REVIEW: Veszprém miss too many chances to endanger PSG in a mostly one-sided match

Paris Saint-Germain HB continued their habit of not returning from Cologne without a victory. For the third time after 2016 and 2018, PSG finished third at the VELUX EHF FINAL4.

The French side profited from a strong performance from goalkeeper Yann Genty and a strong attacking performance from left back Elohim Prandi, while Veszprém missed too many chances and finished fourth like in 2014.

3/4 PLACEMENT MATCH

Telekom Veszprém HC (HUN) vs Paris Saint-Germain HB (FRA) 26:31 (11:14)

• PSG beat Veszprém for the seventh time in a EHF Champions League match – and for the second time in Cologne after the 27:26 win in the 2017 semi-final
• after changing their defence and thanks to goalkeeper Yann Genty (nine saves in the first half, 17 in total), Paris turned a 3:6 deficit into a 9:7 lead which grew to 14:11 at half-time
• even a late series of outstanding saves by goalkeeper Vladimir Cupara did not stop Veszprém from losing
• 10 out of their 12 court players scored for PSG, with Elohim Prandi and Nedim Remili leading the scoring with six goals each
• centre back Mate Lekai scored nine goals for Veszprém, three fewer than in the whole 2019/20 group phase

Elohim Prandi – from disappointment to efficiency

On Monday, he was sad and disappointed, only 24 hours later, he was one of the match winners for Paris Saint-Germain.

Elohim Prandi only scored once from four shots in the semi-final against Barça, but in the placement match against Veszprém, the 22-year-old left back was on fire, netting in six times.

Prandi belongs to a young French generation which won almost all gold medals in the youth and junior age categories. Arriving from Nîmes this summer, Prandi now has the chance of developing alongside stars such as Nikola Karabatci and Mikkel Hansen.

TEXT: EHF / Björn Pazen