Fast-paced, high-scoring—but no winner. SG Flensburg-Handewitt and TSV Hannover-Burgdorf played to a 39-39 draw in the first quarterfinal of the EHF European League. Here are the quotes.
Johannes Golla, SG captain: “We would have loved to win in front of our fans. But even with a narrow victory, we wouldn’t have been able to rest easy. Now we’re facing a match next week that feels like a true final. The performance wasn’t what we had envisioned. Unlike three or four weeks ago, Hannover kept up with the pace. Both teams had quality goalkeepers, but there were also gaps in the defense. We still have every chance of reaching the Final Four.”
Aleš Pajović, SG Coach: “I’m not happy with the game. Our defense wasn’t good. It certainly wasn’t the plan to concede 39 goals. Hannover deserves congratulations on their performance. During the phases where we were leading by two or three goals, we weren’t able to shift the momentum in our favor. Next week we start from scratch again in Hannover. I hope my guys understand that they have to play better defense if they want to reach the Final Four. Defense was the problem this time; the offense scored 39 goals.”
Marius Steinhauser, Recken right wing: “We actually had a chance to win, but we can be satisfied with how we held our own. We attacked well across the width of the court. Joel Birlehm made some great saves and August Pedersen scored incredibly well. We wanted to give it our all, and we succeeded. We now have the chance to reach the Final Four next week.”
Blaž Blagotinšek, SG defensive leader: “It wasn’t our best game. We simply conceded too many goals at the back. At first we stood together well, but then we lost our stability again. Hannover had quality and played with the necessary patience at the right time. We’ll now analyze the game and prepare well for the second match.”