On Sunday evening, Paris Saint-Germain Handball made their entry into competition in the Coupe de France and remain ain the running to defend their title after their round of 32 win away to Dijon (25-29).
In a packed arena, Les Rouge et Bleu quickly found their rhythm and made the break with their first attacks, thanks to Sander Sagosen et Nedim Remili (2’: 0-2). But, while our side maintained the lead throughout the first half, they were up against a side who weren't about to take it lying down (7’: 7-10). Three points separated the sides for a long stretch (18’: 8-11) but, ten minutes from the half-time buzzer, the capital club broke free thanks to some great defending and clinical finishing! Luka Karabatic latched onto a superb Nedim Remili pass to put the visitors six goals up (24’: 10-16), while Luc Abalo, in excellent form, capped a counter with oodles of finesse (28’: 10-19). At the break, Raul Gonzalez's men had a comfortable lead (12-19).
Dijon came out swinging in the second half and immediately chipped away at the deficit (34’: 17-21). To slow their roll, Paris looked to their Scandinavians, with Henrik Toft Hansen sinking his shot on the turn (37’: 17-22) Kim Ekdahl du Rietz powering home (41’: 18-24). But it wasn't enough to get Paris definitively out of danger (45’: 20-24). Indeed, Dijon 'keeper Maxime Diot grew in strength as the game played out, denying more and more efforts from our lads. However, Benoît Kounkoud conjured up a superb chabala to buck the trend (48’: 21-26). In the final stages, Les Rouge et Bleu controlled things well - thanks in no small part to a string of saves from Thierry Omeyer(55’: 22-27) - and punched their ticket for the next round (25-29).
Faced with an excellent Dijon side, Paris Saint-Germain Handball took control and claimed a deserved win. In doing so, they clinched a place in the Coupe de France's round of 16. Their next outing comes in Nantes on Thursday night, when they will play their last match for 2018.
(Credits: J. Azouze/PSG)