The four semi-finals berths of the 2023 IHF Men’s Super Globe will be awarded on Thursday, as the four European sides taking part in the competition are well-positioned to seal them.

The most daunting task looks to be FC Barcelona’s, as the most decorated team in the history of the competition will face a sturdy challenge from Egyptian powerhouse Al-Ahly, which made the semi-finals in the previous edition.

GROUP D
12:15 AST Industria Kielce (POL) vs San Francisco CalHeat (USA)

Industria Kielce suffered a huge scare in their maiden game at the 2023 IHF Men’s Super Globe, taking a 27:26 narrow win against Bahraini side Al-Najma Club, after they were down one goal with two minutes left on the clock.

Thanks to their experience and some excellent attacking plays, Kielce bounced back, but it was a wake-up call for Talant Dujshebaev’s side, which finished third in the previous two editions of the competition they took part in.

More is needed from Kielce, who welcomed three crucial players for the 2023 IHF Men’s Super Globe, as goalkeeper Andreas Wolff, right back Alex Dujshebaev and left back Szymon Sicko returned from injuries and featured in the fiery clash against Al-Najma.

Kielce will surely be favoured against the San Francisco CalHeat in this match, but the American side should not be counted out, as it can provide some exciting moments, as proven in the 22:29 loss against Al-Najma Club on Wednesday.

The CalHeat, however, lost all their four matches played so far in two separate editions of the IHF Men’s Super Globe, and lack the experience needed to challenge Kielce, yet if they feel that something is for the taking, they will surely try and derail the Polish side’s challenge for the trophy.

GROUP B
14:30 AST Kuwait SC (KUW) vs Füchse Berlin (GER)

Nothing was able to stop Füchse Berlin in their maiden match in this edition of the IHF Men’s Super Globe, with the German side displaying a brilliant attacking form, which enabled a 48:34 win against San Fernando HB, in their return after five years in the competition.

It was also Mathias Gidsel’s debut in the competition and he celebrated this with a flawless 13-goal outing against the Argentinian side, with 12 goals scored in the first half, as he was rested mostly throughout the whole second half.

Füchse need only a draw to win the group, but they will begin the match as favourites, in spite of their obvious shortcomings in the department of depth, as they have plenty of injured players, especially in the back line, with Paul Drux and Fabian Wiede out for the foreseeable future.

On the other hand, the leaders of the German Bundesliga will face a side which has never won any match against an European opponent. Kuwait did provide an exciting opener against San Fernando, taking a 41:29 win, yet will face a team which can score at free will, a thing proven time and time again both in the Bundesliga and in the EHF European League Men this season.

Füchse have never finished outside of the top two at the previous three editions they had played in at the IHF Men’s Super Globe, with a win enabling them to keep that streak alive for at least a few days, but a draw will also be enough, as they have a +14 goal difference, as opposed to Kuwait’s +12.

GROUP C
16:45 AST SC Magdeburg (GER) vs University of Queensland (AUS)

On a 10-game winning streak at the IHF Men’s Super Globe, winning all their previous matches in the competition over the last two editions, SC Magdeburg will be heavily favoured against the University of Queensland, in the last match of Group C.

Magdeburg are now tied with Khaleej on the top two places in the group, with both sides having one win, but the German side has already taken a 29:20 win against the Saudi hosts, as they are now eyeing another win.

Their attacking brand of handball has already made waves at the 2023 IHF Men’s Super Globe, with left wing Matthias Musche providing the second best performance in a single match so far, with 10 goals against Khaleej. 

More of that is going to be expected on Thursday, when the reigning champions face a team which has only played one game in their history in the IHF Men’s Super Globe, conceding the largest number of goals in a single match so far in this edition, in the 26:48 loss against Khaleej on Wednesday.

Historically, Magdeburg have a winning record against Australian sides, having won both their matches against Sydney-Uni, 41:23 in 2022 and 32:20 in 2021. However, they will be without left back Philipp Weber, who went off with a knee injury in the win against Khaleej.

GROUP A
19:00 AST Al-Ahly (EGY) vs FC Barcelona (ESP)

Both Al-Ahly (38:20) and FC Barcelona (43:19) beat Al-Noor in the first two matches of Group A at the 2023 IHF Men’s Super Globe, therefore setting up a do-or-die clash for the two powerhouses in the final day of the preliminary round in Dammam.

With a superior goal difference, +24, as opposed to Al-Ahly’s +18, Barca have the option of the draw in this match, but they will surely go for the win, having previously won 28 of the 31 matches played in the competition, for a winning percentage of 90.3%.

Yet Barca have their own woes, with a squad lacking the proper depth they boasted over the past few years, which can be a huge boost for Al-Ahly, as they aim to secure back-to-back appearances in the semi-finals of the IHF Men’s Super Globe.

While the Egyptian side has only one win against European opposition in their history of the competition, they will be surely trying to create a huge shock here, eliminating Barca in the preliminary round for the first time in history.

On the other hand, Al-Ahly’s coach, David Davis, who featured as a player for Ciudad Real and Atletico Madrid, Barca’s big rivals in Spain between 2005 and 2013, knows his opponents inside out and will surely try to use that knowledge the best way he can to provide some drama in this match.

Barca and Al-Ahly have previously matched up against each other in the quarter-finals of the 2015 IHF Men’s Super Globe, with the Spanish side taking a narrow 20:16 win, a fiery clash which can be expected on Thursday.