On Wednesday, our Parisians head northwards once again, this time to Odense in Denmark to take on Fredericia. We take a look ahead to this EHF Champions League Matchday 12 fixture.
Decisive for both sides
The only newcomer to this 2024-2025 edition, Fredericia have been learning over the weeks by measuring themselves against the best sides that Europe has to offer. However, it seems like a step too far for the Danes, who have paid for their lack of experience and could be officially eliminated from the competition if they lose to the capital club on Wednesday. The equation for Fredericia is clear: break their three-match losing streak and keep their hopes of qualifying alive.
For Paris, the pressure is mounting as we approach the end of the group stage. Defeated at home against Plock last week (28-31), Raul Gonzalez's men have dropped to fourth place in Group A. Nothing to worry about for the moment, as Les Rouge et Bleu are still one point behind Sporting, second behind Veszprém, and level with third-placed Berlin. However, the Parisians know that with only three matches left to play, another misstep could dash their hopes of qualifying directly for the quarter-finals.
Leaky defence
Fredericia's problems in this European campaign can be explained largely by their defensive sector. Their rearguard is the most permeable in the competition, having conceded 369 goals. Facing them is one of this season's top scorers: Kamil Syprzak, who, with 68 goals in ten appearances, is one of the three highest scorers in the EHF Champions League this season. For the Danes, the top scorer is Reinier Taboada Dranquet, with 44 goals.
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Key stats...
- On Wednesday, Paris will face a Danish team for the 17th time in club history. With a record of 14 wins and two defeats so far, sides from the Scandinavian country have done particularly well against the capital club.
- Paris and Fredericia have only met once in their history - earlier in this season's group stage. On that occasion, Raul Gonzalez's men delivered a perfect performance, notching their biggest win of the Champions League season so far (38-30).
- With nine and eight goals respectively to their name in the first leg, Elohim Prandi and Kamil Syprzak set their goalscoring record in the EHF Champions League this season. The two Parisians have since achieved the same performance on two other occasions, against Bucharest (35-32) and in Berlin (38-40).
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Group A Matchday 12 fixtures
Wednesday 19 February, 18:45: Fredericia - Paris, broadcast on Eurosport and to be followed via our live-tweet.
- Thursday 20 February, 18:45: Wisla Plock - Fredericia
- Thursday 20 February, 18:45: Veszprém - Sporting CP
- Thursday 20 February, 20:45: Pelister - Dinamo Bucharest
(Credits: L. Valroff/PSG)