Paris wrap up 2019 in style
The context:
On Wednesday evening, Paris Saint-Germain Handball played their last game of 2019. At the Stade Pierre de Coubertin, the Lidl StarLigue leaders - who boast the best attack in the championship - looked to continue their flawless run by claiming a thirteenth win from as many matches. Their opponents, Dunkerque, were in 7th place in the ranking before the match, and had the league's best defence, which made this Christmas-themed event a real occasion.
The summary:
Dressed in festive red jerseys, with their nicknames printed on the back, our players began the game well, thanks in particular to Rodrigo Corrales and Mikkel Hansen (6': 3-2). However, they were unable to break away, missing several chances (9': 4-4). To do so, it was necessary to wait for the Parisian defence to gain momentum and allow Adama Keita to score on the counter-attack (12': 7-5). But the USDK did not give up... Well led by Reinier Taboada and the many seven-metre throws he obtained - and converted - they fought their way back into the game (19': 10-10). But, in the last ten minutes of the first half, the capital club pushed hard and conceded no further goals before the break - while continuing to core plenty! Under the impetus of Adama Keita (24': 15-12), Benoît Kounkoud (26': 16-12), Sander Sagosen (26': 17-12), Kamil Syprzak (27': 18-12) and Mikkel Hansen, our team inflicted an 8-0 on their opponents and went back to the dressing room well in control of the match (30': 20-12).
The summary:
Dressed in festive red jerseys, with their nicknames printed on the back, our players began the game well, thanks in particular to Rodrigo Corrales and Mikkel Hansen (6': 3-2). However, they were unable to break away, missing several chances (9': 4-4). To do so, it was necessary to wait for the Parisian defence to gain momentum and allow Adama Keita to score on the counter-attack (12': 7-5). But the USDK did not give up... Well led by Reinier Taboada and the many seven-metre throws he obtained - and converted - they fought their way back into the game (19': 10-10). But, in the last ten minutes of the first half, the capital club pushed hard and conceded no further goals before the break - while continuing to core plenty! Under the impetus of Adama Keita (24': 15-12), Benoît Kounkoud (26': 16-12), Sander Sagosen (26': 17-12), Kamil Syprzak (27': 18-12) and Mikkel Hansen, our team inflicted an 8-0 on their opponents and went back to the dressing room well in control of the match (30': 20-12).
After the break, the Parisians maintained their dominance, sometimes in a manner similar to Gudjon Sigurdsson's magnificent spin-shot/chabala hybrid (35': 23-14). While the attack were putting on a show, the defence remained solid and conceded very few shooting solutions to the league's secod-weakest front line (43': 27-19). Even when the visitors found a breach, Rodri quickly stepped in to deny them (47': 27-20). In this context, it was not surprising to see Raul Gonzalez's side cruising in the second half and continuing to widen the gap (50': 30-21). A few moments later, Benoît, perfectly played through by Nedim Remili, gave his team a ten-point lead (52': 31-21). After late exploits from Sadou Ntanzi and Dylan Nahi, Paris confirmed their win (36-25) and finishes the first half of the season with a perfect record.
The word: Show
Paris Saint-Germain Handball head into the break atop the Lidl StarLigue standings, six points ahead of their nearest rivals, with 13 wins from 13 games and a blistering attacking record! They boast the best front line in our league (455 goals scored) and have scored 30 or more goals in each of their league outings this season.
Coming up:
Les Rouge et Bleu will return to competition on 31 January, when they travel to Ajaccio for the Coupe de France Round of 16. It should be noted that some of our players will meet in Norway, Sweden and Austria to compete in Euro 2020.
(Credits: TeamPics/PSG)