Six games are scheduled in the Dammam Sports Hall on Saturday, as the 2023 IHF Men’s Super Globe is edging closer to its conclusion. The Placement Matches 9/12 will throw off the day, followed by the Placement Matches 5/8, but all eyes will be on the two semi-finals.

The four European teams have all made it there, as Barcelona will face Füchse Berlin for the fourth time at the IHF Men’s Super Globe, while Kielce and Magdeburg rekindle their rivalry, after Magdeburg won the EHF Champions League Men title against the Polish side in June.

Semi-finals

17:30 AST FC Barcelona (ESP) vs Füchse Berlin (GER)

This will be the fourth time in history when Füchse Berlin will face FC Barcelona at the IHF Men’s Super Globe, with Barca taking two wins, as opposed to Füchse’s one, which came in the semi-final of the 2015 editions, when the German side took a 26:25 win and went on to win their first title.

Füchse have won four out of four semi-finals played in the competition so far, making the final each time in their four appearances, winning twice and losing twice. But the challenge looks to be difficult, especially as Barca are the most decorated team in the history of the competition, with five titles.

In their comeback to the IHF Men’s Super Globe, Füchse have been excellent, boasting the second best attack, with 85 goals, one less than SC Magdeburg, with their fast throw offs and fast breaks being key in their success so far, ticking two wins against San Fernando HB and Kuwait SC.

Füchse also boast the joint top scorer of the competition, right back Mathias Gidsel, who scored 13 goals in each of the first two matches, in his maiden appearance at the IHF Men’s Super Globe, and looks set to deliver the goods once again here.

The German side is unbeaten so far this season in all competitions, winning 15 matches and drawing another one in the German Bundesliga, the German Cup and in the EHF European League Men, but will probably face their most formidable opponent so far.

Barca have lagged behind this summer, after losing some key players, but they looked sharp and had an excellent rotation so far at the IHF Men’s Super Globe, clinching the second-largest win against Al-Noor, 43:19, and a clear 38:27 win against Al-Ahly in the preliminary round, delivering some excellent performances.

Only Magdeburg (32 goals) have conceded less so far than Barca (44 goals), but the challenge against the German side will be tough as well, especially as the Spanish powerhouse aims to seal their sixth consecutive finals berth, after winning the title in 2017, 2018 and 2019 and coming second behind Magdeburg in 2021 and 2022.

All the matches between the two sides at the IHF Men’s Super Globe have been decided by five goals or less, as the first semi-final looks set to provide an exciting game between two of the best European teams right now.

20:15 AST SC Magdeburg (GER) vs Industria Kielce (POL)

Five months ago, the two sides collided in an epic final in the EHF Champions League Men, with Magdeburg needing extra-time to clinch the trophy, with a 30:29 win, which capped off an incredible comeback and an incredible weekend in Cologne for the German side, which sealed wins against Barcelona and Kielce at penalties and in extra-time respectively.

Now, the two European powerhouses collide again in the semi-finals of the IHF Men’s Super Globe, where Kielce have been twice, losing both matches on their way to finish on the third place in their previous two appearances, in 2016 and 2022.

On the other hand, Magdeburg have an extraordinary record at the IHF Men’s Super Globe, winning 12 of the 13 matches they played, including all of those played in the previous two editions, in 2021 and 2022, when they won the title. In fact, with another win here, Magdeburg will have only one match between them and becoming only the second team in history to secure a three-peat in the competition.

The German side are in superb form right now, after a shaky start of the season, securing 11 consecutive wins in all competition, having also impressed in Dammam this week, being the top attack in the competition, with 86 goals scored over two games. Bennet Wiegert’s side has also broken the record for the number of goals scored in a single match and the largest win in the history of the competition, in their 57:14 drubbing of the University of Queensland on Thursday.

But Kielce, who suffered a huge scare against Al-Najma in the competition’s opener, winning 27:26, are a whole different beast and are usually creating issues for the opponents they face, in spite of a wave of players coming back from injuries, with goalkeeper Andreas Wolff and backs Alex Dujshebaev and Szymon Sicko making their way back after injuries.

On the other hand, right wing Arkadiusz Moryto, who travelled with the squad to Saudi Arabia, has not featured any minute so far, against Al-Najma and the San Francisco CalHeat, having been rested, but will probably make his debut in this semi-final.

Placement Matches 5/8

13:15 AST Al-Ahly (EGY) vs Kuwait SC (KUW)

Al-Ahly’s dreams of reaching another semi-final, the second consecutive one, at the IHF Men’s Super Globe were thwarted by FC Barcelona on Thursday, as a strong start from the Egyptian side was not enough. Al-Ahly faltered in the second half and conceded a 26:37 loss, focusing now on finishing fifth.

The first step towards that goal will be the game against Kuwait SC, a highly-improved side from the last edition, which did concede their own nine-goal loss against Füchse Berlin, but looked like they could challenge their opponents for at least 35 minutes.

Last season’s Kuwait top scorer, Ali Saleh, has been the main scorer once again here, with 12 goals, while stars Frankis Marzo and Angel Hernandez have added eight goals each for Kuwait, which hope to exert some pressure on Al-Ahly too.

The Egyptian side come after a painful loss against FC Barcelona, but with huge support in the stands, they will look to finish at least on the fifth place after missing out of the semi-finals, yet they have scored five goals less than Kuwait and conceded seven goals less than the Asian side.

15:15 AST Khaleej Club (KSA) vs Al-Najma Club (BRN)

A Gulf derby between Khaleej and Al-Najma is always going to be an interesting proposition, as the two Asian sides will collide on Saturday in the Placement Matches 5/8, with both delivering some exciting moments of handball so far at the 2023 IHF Men’s Super Globe.

Al-Najma were one of the top performers in the competition so far, as they nearly caused a huge shock in the opening game against Industria Kielce, when their challenge for a win was derailed in the last two minutes, conceding a 26:27 loss.

They bounced back with their first win in the second match, 29:22 against the San Francisco CalHeat, with back Mohamed Ahmed being the third scorer so far in the competition, with 17 goals.

On the other hand, Khaleej, which made it here through their 48:24 win against the University of Queensland, and lost against SC Magdeburg, have plenty of talent at their disposal, despite not being able to count on Bahraini centre back Hussain Al Sayyad, who helped Al-Najma win the 2023 AHF Asian Club League Championship earlier in the season.

Placement Matches 9/12

09:15 AST Al-Noor (KSA) vs San Fernando HB (ARG)

No team has scored less goals than Al-Noor in this edition of the IHF Men’s Super Globe, with the Saudi side putting only 39 goals past FC Barcelona and Al-Ahly, in the toughest group in this edition of the competition.

However, the hosts will likely face an easier challenge on Saturday, when they take on San Fernando HB, a side which has conceded 85 goals, the second largest number in the competition so far, using a fast-paced brand of handball, which has also saw them scoring 63 goals.

The Saudi side cannot avoid their worst finish in the competition, after taking the seventh place in their previous appearance, in 2021, but will aim to end on the ninth place, with a win against the Argentinian debutants being the first step towards that goal.

11:15 AST University of Queensland (AUS) vs San Francisco CalHeat (USA)

At the end of the match, one of the teams will secure their maiden win at the IHF Men’s Super Globe, as both the University of Queensland and the San Francisco CalHeat have lost all their matches so far in the competition.

While the CalHeat are riding a five-game losing streak, dating back to the 2021 edition, the Australian team has lost both their matches in this edition and have the largest number of conceded goals – 103 – 20 more than any other side.

On the other hand, the attack has been a problem for the two teams, with the CalHeat scoring only 45 goals, five more than UQ, who was at the receiving end of the most lopsided match in the history of the IHF Men’s Super Globe on Thursday, when they conceded a 14:57 loss against reigning champions SC Magdeburg.