One year ago, SC Magdeburg delivered a huge surprise in the IHF Men’s Super Globe final, by clinching the title against Barça, with the Spanish powerhouse able to avenge that loss in this edition’s last act.

Barça clinched a clear 39:28 win against Lomza Industria Kielce, while SC Magdeburg took a 36:28 win against Al-Ahly SC in two lopsided semi-finals.

Riding on the back of an otherworldly performance from goalkeeper Gonzalo Perez de Vargas, who saved 10 shots in the first 12 minutes, had a 61.5% saving efficiency in the first half and totally dominated Kielce’s attack, Barça secured one of their largest-ever wins against Kielce, 39:28.

There was nothing the Polish side could do against the reigning EHF Champions League Men winners, as the last year’s final, which ended on penalties, was replayed in one of the semi-finals of the IHF Men’s Super Globe, with Barça taking a commanding win, 39:28.

The Spanish side also extended their unbeaten streak to 45 games, dating back to November 2021, with Kielce’s attacking efficiency dropping to a meagre 50%.

Barça, the team with the highest number of titles (five), qualified for their seventh final in history, missing the final act only once, in 2015, when they finished third.

In the first semi-final, SC Magdeburg clinched a clear 36:28 win against Egyptian side Al-Ahly SC, displaying their best game at the 2022 IHF Men’s Super Globe, which was also their seventh win in a row in the competition.

The German champions and the reigning title holders took the initiative early in the match and never looked back but had to sweat until holding a firm grip on the game.

After the first half ended with a single-goal advantage for Magdeburg, 18:17, Al-Ahly SC collapsed in the second half after Eslam Eissa saw a red card for endangering an opponent. Without Eissa, their top scorer, Ahly never stood a chance and were totally outplayed by their more experienced opponents.

The Egyptian side is now heading for the bronze medal game, while Magdeburg became the third team in history to qualify for back-to-back finals, after Fuchse Berlin and Barca.

Kaddah powers Khaleej to Placement Match 5-8

Two matches were also played in the Placement Round 5-8, deciding part of the final standings, with hosts Khaleej and Esperance de Tunis qualifying for the Placement Match 5/6, after their wins on Saturday.

Khaleej wrote history by taking a 35:32 win against SL Benfica, with left back Hassan Kaddah entering the history books of the IHF Men’s Super Globe with a 14-goal outing, tying the best-ever performance for a single player in the competition.

In the other match, Esperance clinched a 35:33 win after penalties, thwarting the superb comeback from Taubate Handebol, who erased a six-goal gap during the game to force penalties.

Sydney and Ministros drop third game in a row

Al-Kuwait SC wrote a page of history themselves by clinching their first win in the competition, 41:26, against Club Ministros, the first win for a Kuwaiti side since 2007, despite missing a key player in right back Angel Hernandez. 

They will face host side Mudhar on Sunday in the Placement Match, whose 29:26 win against Sydney-Uni came after a 6:0 unanswered run to end the match. The Australian side aim to finish the 2022 edition of the IHF Men’s Super Globe, their tenth in a row, on a high, by winning their last match against Club Ministros, which would only be their second win in history in the competition after 39 matches.

Both Sydney-Uni and Ministros, who are still searching for their first-ever win in the competition, enter the match with a three-game losing streak while also displaying the most porous defences in the competition.