Triumphant return
The context:
Two months after their last match at the Stade Pierre de Coubertin, Paris Saint-Germain Handball returned to their home court on Wednesday night, taking on Dunkerque in Lidl Starligue Round 14 action. The capital club had a chance to firm in top spot on the table faced with a side who hand't won since losing at home to Paris. This reunion of Parisian players and their fans was a big party, with those who represented their countries at the World Cup honoured before the match began.
Key facts:
Les Rouge et Bleu were in dominant mood right from the off. Nedim Remili took just three minutes to hand Paris the first break of the evening (3’: 3-1) and from there the home side's lead grew quickly (10’: 8-2) thanks to some clinical finishing as well as some hermetic defending. Thierry Omeyer illustrated this dominance perfectly, winning the majority of his one-on-one duels with the Northerners - notably denying Wilson Davyes with his right foot (18’: 12-4). Meanwhile, Nikola Karabatic, who was making his return to action at Paris Saint-Germain Handball's home turf, picked up where he left off last year, scoring a superb chabala (20’: 13-5) before concluding a counter-attack (24’: 14-6) as Paris cruised through to the break (17-9).
As the second half began, Luc Abalo brought Coubertin to its feet with a sweet strike from the wing - his 900th Lidl Starligue goal (34’: 20-12). In truth, the Parisian fans barely had a chance to sit down as their side continued to run riot, Rodrigo Corrales stopping a penalty and Nedim swooping on the ball to put Paris ten goals to the good (38’: 22-12). The lead blew out to 11 as the Parisians combined beautifully, Adama Keita starting a counter-attack that his right-wing counterpart Édouard Kempf wrapped up (47’: 27-16). Never danger, Paris Saint-Germain Handball cruised through the final stages of the match (50’: 28-17) and, despite letting up somewhat in the final minutes and allowing Dunkerque to claw some of the way back, ran out deserved winners (30-23).
The Parisian in the match: Nedim Remili
Nedim Remili proved clinical in front of goal once again, top scoring in the match with 7 from 9. Several of his strikes threatened to tear the net off the frame of the goal, but Remili's performance was also notable for the heavy defensive effort that saw him make a number of interceptions.
The word: Academy
Paris had four youth academy graduates on the team sheet (as well as Dylan Garain, playing for Dunkerque): Adama Keita, Robin Dourte, Édouard Kempf and Adrien Chaudanson. They were even all on the court at the same time - this making up the majority of Paris' on-court players - as the match drew to a close!
Coming up:
After this league encounter, Coubertin will once again welcome Velux EHF Champions League action when 19:00 on Sunday rolls around. Raul Gonzalez's men will be up against Zagreb, and a win - in conjunction with a loss for Szeged as they face Zaporozhye - will seal top spot for Paris qualifying them directly for the quarter-finals.