RK Nexe from Croatia is an old acquaintance for Magdeburg. The two teams met in the preliminary round. Magdeburg won the first leg in December with 32:26, the second leg in March with 28:24. The Bundesliga leaders are therefore favorites in the semi-finals, but also warn: Nexe was a stubborn opponent, especially in the first half of the second leg.
Wisla Płock is a seven-time Polish champion and almost had an eighth title to follow. But on Monday, in a heated and dramatic final game of the season, Plock lost to Lomza Vive Kielce in a penalty throw. Its goalkeeper, national goalkeeper Andreas Wolff, showed an outstanding performance. Wisla Plock acted on an equal footing with a final four participant in the Champions League and thus underlined his title ambitions in the European League.
Benfica Lisbon after a bitter defeat against Porto, has little chance of winning the Portuguese league title, may also have to let city rivals Sporting pass them. However, the traditional club should be an uncomfortable opponent with frenetic support from the ranks.
The Venue
The Altice Arena in the Lisbon municipality of Parque das Nacoes is a multipurpose arena with a capacity of up to 20,000 spectators. Local hero Benfica should have a clear home advantage: Benfica club members only pay 15 euros for a tournament ticket – and thus 60 euros less than everyone else.
Source: vs