Direct entry into the quarterfinals
SC Magdeburg celebrates a big victory in the Champions League
March 7, 2024, 9:17 p.m
Handball Bundesliga team SC Magdeburg managed direct qualification for the quarter-finals of the Champions League. The SCM narrowly won against the Hungarian champions Telekom Veszprém. The best Magdeburg shooter is Felix Claar. The quarterfinals will take place at the end of April and beginning of May.
Defending champion SC Magdeburg has secured direct entry into the quarter-finals of the Champions League. Coach Bennet Wiegert’s team won the preliminary round against Hungarian record champions KC Veszprem 30:28 (14:14) and is at least second in Group B. The group victory is still possible if Montpellier provides help against FC Barcelona in the evening (8.45 p.m.).
“That was a big win, very important,” said Magdeburg’s Felix Claar on DAZN: “We played calmly and weren’t impressed by the atmosphere.” The day before, THW Kiel celebrated victory in Group A. This means that the German record champions can hope for an easier opponent in the quarter-finals (April 24th and May 1st) in the fight for the Final Four in Cologne at the beginning of June.
Both teams started with missed shots and technical errors. In the early stages, Veszprém had advantages, especially with ex-Magdeburg player Mike Jensen in goal, but the Hungarians were unable to pull away. Instead, the SCM worked its way into the game and went to the front, but then missed a bigger lead. Veszprém came back and the teams went into the break with a draw.
The second half also began with many missed throws, neither team was able to break away. Magdeburg had problems with the positional attack and the Bundesliga team couldn’t get into the tempo game at all. Two SCM goals within 15 seconds finally gave them a two-goal lead (20:18/42nd), but the hosts got the game back on their side after four minutes. However, the Hungarians could no longer find an answer to the SCM’s next three-goal lead. The SCM won its twelfth victory in a row in the Champions League.