AUDIO: Flensburg’s Lasse Möller: “We have to be happy with the two points” (2 min)
Handball Bundesliga
As of: February 27, 2026 9:31 p.m
Obligatory task fulfilled, but you have to work hard for it: SG Flensburg-Handewitt prevailed in the Bundesliga against bottom team HSG Wetzlar with 35:31 (20:17) and moved into second place.
Sometimes handball writes strange stories. At the beginning of the season, Andreas Palicka moved from Paris to Kolstad IL, only to have his two-year contract canceled in February due to the Norwegians’ financial problems. With Füchse Berlin, a new top club was quickly found for the former THW Kiel keeper (2008-2015). But only from summer onwards. And so the now 39-year-old Swede was in the Wetzlar goal on Friday evening against his old rivals in Flensburg.
And at the beginning Palicka was certainly a factor – thanks to his saves, the game was initially even. However, a strong goalkeeper was not enough for the weakened bottom team to score points against the clear favorites. The SG celebrated its 17th win of the season, the jump to second place in the table and the continuation of a historic series: In 28 years of the Bundesliga, Wetzlar has lost every game in Flensburg.
Wetzlar sets the tone until the score is 8:8
Between the two European League games against HB Montpellier – the SG won the first leg on Tuesday with 40:35 – Flensburg initially couldn’t get into the game. Which was certainly due to Palicka, but perhaps also due to the famous “light shoulder” that the Schleswig-Holsteiners may have taken their opponent on.
However, with Aksel Horgen’s 8:8 (14th), the home team turned things up a notch. While previously only SG keeper Benjamin Buric had shone, things were now also going on the offensive. When Marko Grgic scored his fifth goal nine minutes later, the hosts were already leading 16:10.
In the end, Buric is the best man in the game
However, the bottom of the table didn’t let themselves down. With the first goal of the second half – from Josip Simic – Wetzlar reduced the score to two goals again (18:20/32.). Shortly afterwards, HSG even had the chance to make it 22:22 after Simon Pytlick lost the ball, but Flensburg prevented the equalizer.
At times we played more against ourselves and were lucky to have ‘Benko’ behind us. But with so many right now, we have to be happy with the two points.
Flensburg’s Lasse Möller
Nevertheless, the Hessians stuck with it. Palicka’s save from a Grgic seven-meter penalty, when the keeper simply stood there, and Philipp Ahouansou’s power, against which the SG never really found a solution, were worth seeing.
But in the end it wasn’t Palicka who was the man of the evening, but his counterpart Buric. The 1.97 meter long Bosnian made a massive 17 saves at the end – and thus ensured an ultimately safe victory.
