The defeat against Hannover last weekend hurt SC Magdeburg a lot. It is all the more important that RK Celje’s mandatory task in the Champions League was completed with flying colors.
SC Magdeburg did not let its first defeat since September 2023 derail it. In the Champions League, the SCM achieved their next success on Wednesday (February 21st) and secured second place in the table. Thanks to a strong final phase, the Elbe city team won against the Slovenian champions RK Celje with 37:27 (18:12).
Last Sunday, the Magdeburg team lost 27:28 to TSV Hannover-Burgdorf in the Bundesliga and lost for the first time after 30 games without defeat across all competitions.
Magnusson played a crucial role in the success against Celje with eight goals. (Archive)
Mertens and Magnusson ensure SCM success
In Celje, Magdeburg found it difficult to get into the game at the bottom of the table with no points, missed three of the first five attacks, but stood well defensively and stayed in the game. Counter-attacks following successful defenses allowed the defending champions to move ahead 10-7 midway through the first half and increase their lead to six goals by the break.
After the break, both teams were initially on equal terms again, but then the SCM made too many mistakes and allowed the hosts to close to 24:22. In the end, Celje lacked the quality to finally turn the game around.
The best Magdeburg shooters were Lukas Mertens and Omar Ingi Magnusson with eight goals each. On February 29th, Bennet Wiegert’s team will welcome league leaders FC Barcelona for the absolute top game in Group B.
ten/dpa/sid
