A very nice Christmas present!

Match reports

On Wednesday night, Paris Saint-Germain Handball concluded 2022 with a massive match away to Nantes - with whom they shared second place - at the Neodif XXL for their Liqui Moly StarLigue Round 15 clash. Even without Kamil Syprzak, Luc Steins, Adama Keita and Dominik Mathé, the Parisians' goal was to win and return to parity with leaders Montpellier (beaten the day before in Toulouse, 31-30). 

In an arena set to boil over with excitement, it was The H who got off to the better start (4': 4-1). Despite some long range missiles from Elohim Prandi and Dainis Kristopans, our offensive line had difficulties bypassing a rock-solid home defence (9': 5-2). Little by little, however, Les Rouge et Bleu found the solutions in attack and solidified their defence - an excellent combination that allowed them to get back to within a single goal (12': 7-6). The mano a mano kicked into gear! (17': 9-8).

Much better in every sector, the capital club were almost equal with their opponents (21': 12-11) and, after an exceptional double save by Andreas Palicka, Sadou Ntanzi struck to reset the competition (24': 12-12). Then, a magnificent lob from David Balaguer put Paris in the lead (26': 12-13), setting up our Swedish 'keeper for a final save - right on the buzzer - that allowed Les Rouge et Bleu to take a narrow lead into the break.

At the resumption, unsurprisingly, the duel was every bit as tight as in the first half (35': 18-18). The Parisians were once agin forced to chase the game (38': 20-18) but fortunately, they didn't allow themselves to be distracted and quickly got back into the game, thanks to some excellent defending - and Sadou's achievements up front (43': 23-24). The last quarter of the game was looming as a tension-filled spectacle (46': 25-26).

Les Rouge et Bleu approach the final stages with a two-goal lead (49': 27-29), but the match was still far from over (53': 29-29) as the atmosphere in the Neodif XXL threatened to reach boiling point. Raul Gonzalez's men held out heroically - right up until dying seconds, when The H were awarded a penalty on the buzzer (59': 32-33). Not to worry!Andreas Palicka won his duel with Valero Rivera and Paris Saint-Germain Handball ran out winners in dramatic fashion! They will now spend the international break as co-league leaders! Their return to competition will take place in early February, when the Coupe de France takes them to Chartres.

RAUL GONZALEZ, DAINIS KRISTOPANS AND SADOU NTANZI'S REACTIONS:

(Credits: J. Azouze/PSG)