After 112 intense games, the group phase of the DELO EHF Champions League concluded last weekend, with four teams progressing directly to the quarter-finals, while another eight secured play-off berths.

6,132 goals were scored in the 112 matches, an average of 54.75 goals per game, on par with the output from last season, when the 16 participating teams combined for an average of 54.83 goals per game.

No team left the court undefeated after the first 14 matches, with the Hungarian powerhouse Győri Audi ETO KC boasting the best record in the competition, having their 13-game winning streak snapped in the last round, when they lost against reigning champions Vipers Kristiansand 29:30.

However, Győr, who had the best attack of the competition with 471 goals in 14 games, had no trouble in securing the first place in Group B and, subsequently, a quarter-final berth, with three rounds to go. 

Boasting four players who won the IHF Women’s World Championship last December, including the MVP of the competition, line player Kari Brattset Dale, the Hungarian side had some outstanding outings, clinching clear wins against Vipers (35:29), Metz Handball (39:30 and 33:29) or Russian champions CSKA (32:22 and 27:23).

With their last round win against Győr, title holders Vipers Kristiansand, who also had two world champions in their roster – right back Nora Mork and goalkeeper Katrine Lunde – progressed to the quarter-finals, placing second in Group B with 20 points, one more than Metz Handball.

In Group A, Danish outfit Team Esbjerg, with five world champions in their roster, won the group, conceding only one loss in 14 games, against Brest Bretagne Handball. Sealing their second quarter-final berth in history, Esbjerg had their best start of the competition and are a hot favourite to proceed to the DELO EHF FINAL4 for the first time ever. 

Coached by Jesper Jensen, the mastermind behind the Denmark women’s national team who sealed the bronze medal at Spain 2021 last December, Esbjerg clinched first place in the group with 23 points, two more than Rostov-Don, the team who complete the quarter-final table.

Rostov had a topsy-turvy season but finished the season on a high with four wins and a draw, including a crucial 29:18 victory against Brest Bretagne Handball in the last round, in a winner-takes-all scenario.

Per Johansson’s team, who boast immense talent, including two Spain 2021 silver medallists with Beatrice Edwige and Grace Zaadi, will be a tough nut to crack, boasting an immense defence throughout the group phase, where they conceded only 302 goals, an average of 21.5 goals per game.

Two teams from each group have been eliminated, with Buducnost BEMAX finishing seventh in Group A, with six points, and HC Podravka Vegeta ending the group phase with only two points in eighth place, after losing the last 13 games in a row.

In Group B, Swedish champions IK Sävehof finished seventh with six points, while Turkish champions Kastamonu Belediyesi GSK were the only side to finish the group phase with 14 losses.

The teams ranked three to six in each group progressed to the play-off phase of the competition, which will be played in a home-and-away format, with the first legs scheduled on 26 and 27 March and the second legs one week later, on 3 and 4 April.

The most balanced ties seem to be CSM Bucuresti versus CSKA Moscow, a rematch of the quarter-finals won on aggregate by CSKA last season, and Danish champions Odense Handbold against the runners-up from last season, Brest Bretagne Handball.

Four-time IHF World Player of the Year Cristina Neagu was the top scorer of the DELO EHF Champions League group phase, scoring 94 goals, closely followed by Sävehof’s Jamina Roberts with 87 goals and Vipers’ Nora Mork, with 86 goals.

For more information on the DELO EHF Champions League, visit eurohandball.com. 

Header photo: Győri Audi ETO KC