Nikola Karabatic: 'Enjoy this moment'
After their win over Montpellier in the final of the Trophée des Champions (34-27), the Parisians were very happy with the victory, but well aware of the challenges that await them with the start of the new season.
Raul Gonzalez (Paris Saint-Germain Handball coach):
"I'm very happy that we won this first title. We're off to a better start this season than last time around.
We did a good job in defence, especially with Vincent, who made a lot of saves and allowed us to play on the counter. We had to play like that to beat Montpellier.
Despite our good performances in friendly matches, we didn't necessarily know what level we were going to play at tonight. But against one of the best teams in the world, I think all the players did very well. Now we can start our Lidl StarLigue adventure. We're going to have to correct what we did wrong in this game and prepare for our game against Istres on Wednesday."
Nikola Karabatic (Paris Saint-Germain Handball left back/centre-half):
"From the beginning we were very strong in defence. In attack we applied ourselves. We also wanted to mark the occasion because we knew that Montpellier were coming here in good shape after their victory in the EuroTournament.
We've been preparing for this team well all week with video and it helped us tonight. Of course we still have some adjustments to make. But in terms aggressiveness and commitment we found the right intensity. This title confirms all our very good work during the pre-season. But we know that this is only the beginning of the season. We're going to enjoy this moment, but also quickly get back to work.
The championship starts again next week in Istres. That could be a trap for us as they have nothing to lose in this first face-to-face meeting. We will have to be strong and aware that this clash is no foregone conclusion."
Vincent Gérard (Paris Saint-Germain Handball 'keeper):
"No matter how much we say it's just the Trophée des Champions, at the end there's still a team happy to lift the trophy.
We are very satisfied with this victory and with our offensive and defensive performances. I'm happy because we defended very well and that allowed me to do well at the back and show that I can be counted on this season.
I know we won't be surprising any teams this season. If we are able to repeat this kind of performance, I think we will win a lot of games. In any case, I hope we will all be focused on getting into this new season that awaits us and the big challenges that come our way."