The SG have to make up five goals in the second leg next Wednesday. Concern for Magnus Röd and Alexander Petersson.
Nothing is lost in the Champions League for the SG Flensburg-Handewitt handball players. But after the 21:26 (10:13) defeat in the quarter-final first leg at Aalborg Handbold, the path to the Final Four in Cologne has become brutally difficult.
As in the previous season, coach Maik Machulla’s team couldn’t find a recipe to beat the up-and-coming Danish team. “We are incredibly disappointed with the result. It’s a difficult hurdle that we have to jump over in the second leg, ”said Machulla with a view to the second duel next Wednesday at 8.45 pm in the Flens-Arena.
Much to learn
“Aalburg was smarter than us,” said SG backcourt player Mads Mensah.
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We have a lot of opportunities to do better in the second leg. We have a lot to learn from this game.
Mads Mensah
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Mensah made goalkeeper Michael Aggefors the difference between the two teams. In a strong first half and in the final phase, the SG Swede’s parades were particularly painful.
Much too passive
The Flensburg team got off to a very bad start in the Aalborg Arena. The Danes looked fresher and more determined, the SG was completely beside them. The attack seemed uninspired and sluggish, the defenses lacked ties and aggressiveness. Aalborg’s highly dynamic left-hander Lukas Sandell – physically not exactly a giant – scored seven goals in 30 minutes with almost no physical contact. Even the half-left Felix Claar did not get any bruises in his four hits.
At least on the defensive, the guests increased a little from the middle of the second round. Goalkeeper Benjamin Buric, who found insufficient support but also let durable balls pass, now managed to make some important saves that prevented the worst.
Too many failures
In front it was still tough. Left-hander Magnus Röd had given a few impulses before he injured his right knee in the 15th minute and saw the rest of the game on the bench. The first diagnosis was that the inner ligament was overstretched. Alexander Petersson could not move half right either and then retired with an Achilles tendon irritation, which is why only the right-handers Mensah and Göran Sögard were used in the second half.
After the break, a turnaround seemed to be on the way. The Flensburg defense acted more offensively and snappily, the Danes only managed one goal in eleven minutes. The SG came in the 41st minute at 14:14 for the first time to equalize. Jim Gottfridsson was the big driver in this phase.
Too many missed throws
The momentum was then lost again when the guests frighteningly carelessly missed the best chances. They did not hit the empty goal of the Danes, who attacked with seven field players, counterattacks failed and Aggefors was thrown even warmer. “We had it in our hands, but there were too many simple mistakes,” said Machulla. In the final phase, Gottfridsson also began to limp. He could only distribute balls. The playmaker’s injury should not be serious.
SG Flensburg-Handewitt: Buric, Bergerud (ne) – Golla (2), Hald (1), Svan (3), Wanne (4/3), Jöndal, Steinhauser, Mensah (4), Sögard (2), Gottfridsson (5), Holpert, Petersson, Red
Aalborg Handball: Aggefors, Gade (with a 7m) – Jakobsen (1), Samuelsson (1), Rasmussen, Barthold (1), Claar (8), Sandell (8), Läsö, Saugstrup, Holst, Strandgaard, Christiansen, Möllgaard (4) , Antonsen, Juul-Lassen (3/1)
Referee: Sondors / Licis (Latvia)
Time penalties: 2:5
7m: 1/1:4/3
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