Defending champion SC Magdeburg made the German-German final at the IHF Super Globe in Saudi Arabia perfect against Füchse Berlin. Berlin surprisingly eliminated FC Barcelona.
In the new edition of the Champions League final from June, the Magdeburg handball players won the second semi-final against Barlinek Industria Kielce on Saturday (November 11th, 2023) with 28:24 (15:14).
The final will take place on Sunday (6:15 p.m.). The best SCM shooter was Omar Ingi Magnusson with six goals. Magdeburg got off to a better start against Andreas Wolff and Co., gained a two-goal lead, but failed to extend it. The SCM briefly led by four goals thanks to saves from Nikola Portner – but after Magdeburg’s lack of concentration, Kielce immediately reduced the lead to two goals. At the end of a balanced half, Magdeburg went into the break with a one-goal lead.
Concentrated defensive work
Both teams showed concentrated defensive work, the game remained comparatively low in goals – only five goals were scored in the first ten minutes after the break. At 18:19 (42nd), Kielce led for the first time and had made some defensive changes. Magdeburg needed time to adapt and regained the lead (21:20/46.). Only shortly before the end did the SCM increase their lead to two goals (25:23/57th) and ultimately win clearly.
Fight of the foxes is rewarded
The Füchse Berlin had previously pulled off a huge surprise in the first semi-final against the favorite top club FC Barcelona with 35:34 (16:16, 29:29) after extra time. The best Berlin throwers were Mathias Gidsel with ten goals and Hans Lindberg with eight goals.
Balanced from the start
From the start it was an even game between the Bundesliga leaders and the eleven-time Champions League winners. The Berliners repeatedly managed to play quick attacks. In the middle of the first half, the Foxes were able to pull away for the first time at 12:8. But two time penalties threw coach Jaron Siewert’s team out of step. Barcelona responded with a 4-0 run.
The Foxes also missed too many top-class opportunities. Nothing changed at the start of the second half. Barcelona not only took the lead for the first time after the break, but also extended it to 20:17. But the Foxes fought back and equalized 70 seconds before the end to make it 29:29. Six seconds before the end, Lasse Ludwig even saved a controversial penalty.
The extension also remained exciting. Nils Lichtlein scored the winning goal 29 seconds before the end. The Spaniards’ last throw was blocked.