On Sunday, Paris Saint-Germain Handball turned in a serious and accomplished performance to defeat Limoges 29-36. Here's a look back at the Liqui Moly StarLigue Round 21 encounter.
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Having booked their place in the Coupe de France final with a hard-fought 35-32 victory over Montpellier, Paris Saint-Germain Handball returned to league action on Sunday, this time away to Limoges. Faced with one of the surprise packages of this season's Liqui Moly StarLigue, Raul Gonzalez's men were looking to continue their fine form and maintain their unbeaten record on the national stage this season.
In a tight start to the match, it was the goalkeepers who came out on top, be it former Rouge et Bleu custodian Gauthier Ivah or capital club incumbent Jannick Green, whose double save gave Paris the lead with a counter-attack perfectly finished off by Kamil Syprzak (5': 1-2). Despite a partisan home crowd, Raul Gonzalez's men managed to find their rhythm in the opening minutes, and Elohim Prandi gave them a one-goal lead with a powerful shot (9': 2-4). After a hard-fought first quarter of an hour, Les Rouge et Bleu had a three-point lead over their counterparts from Nouvelle-Aquitaine (16': 6-9).
As the two sides went blow for blow, Yoann Gibelin restored the Parisians' lead - fitting reward for his splendid form since returning from injury (21': 10-12). Raul Gonzalez's men took advantage of every mistake made by the Limoges rearguard, and Paris increased their lead in the final minutes of the first period, forcing Alberto Entrerrios to call his first time-out (26': 11-15). After building momentum throughout the first half, Paris went into the locker room with a comfortable lead (30': 14-19).
Après une première période bien maîtrisée, nos 🔴🔵 rentrent aux vestiaires avec 5 longueurs d'avance ! pic.twitter.com/JX6ypsLKwo
— PSG Handball (@psghand) March 24, 2024
Paris began the second half with the same intentions. Luc Steins made a splendid interception to pierce the Limousin defence as Les Rouge et Bleu took control of the scoreboard (32': 14-21). With their backs against the wall, the home side refused to give up, however, and made up some of their deficit (41': 20-24). As the final quarter approached, Raul Gonzalez's men found their rhythm again, forcing Limoges to call another time out (45': 23-28).
However, the Parisians took advantage to hit back even harder, and went into money-time with confidence thanks to a double from Jacob Holm, which saw them extend their lead to nine goals (49': 23-32). Les Rouge et Bleu were on fire in attack, but they could also count on an imperious Jannick Green with 13 saves on the night and a key role in a victory that was taking shape as the minutes ticked by (55': 28-34). At the end of a serious encounter, the capital club beat Limoges at the Palais des Sports de Beauregard (60': 29-36). Raul Gonzalez's men are now full of confidence ahead of a decisive match in the EHF Champions League play-off round at Wisla Plock on Thursday.
(Credits: E. Renard/Team Pics/PSG)