Limoges (65:64 against HC Kriens-Luzern), GOG (65:64 against Sport Lisboa e Benfica), and Melsungen (55:54 against VfL Gummersbach) all completed impressive comebacks on home court to wipe out their defeats from the first leg last week. Only FC Porto (63:58 against FENIX Toulouse) held on to their big first-leg advantage, despite a two-goal defeat on Tuesday.
The quarter-finals include three teams from Germany, two from France, and one each from Portugal, Spain, and Denmark, and will be played on 22 and 29 April. The Maschinensucher EHF Finals 2025 in Hamburg are scheduled for 24/25 May.
The quarter-final pairings are as follows:
- FC Porto (POR) vs Montpellier Handball (FRA)
- MT Melsungen (GER) vs Bidasoa Irun (ESP)
- Limoges Handball (FRA) vs THW Kiel (GER)
- GOG (DEN) vs SG Flensburg-Handewitt (GER)
PLAY-OFFS, SECOND LEG
Limoges Handball (FRA) vs HC Kriens-Luzern (SUI) 36:28 (16:16)
Limoges win 65:64 on aggregate
The burden of winning by eight goals was huge for European club competition debutants Limoges, but the French side made the miracle come true after an incredible comeback against Kriens. Only once in the match, three seconds before the end, Limoges were ahead by eight goals — enough to beat the Swiss side. Seif el Deraa was the man to score the crucial goal for the 36:28, before Radojca Cepic missed the last chance for the visitors on the final buzzer. Ihor Turchenko again was best scorer for the hosts: after five goals in the first leg, the Ukrainian shooter netted 10 times on home ground to raise his total for the season to over 70. That also applies to Marin Šipic from Kriens, but the Croatian line player won't be able anymore to add to his total this season.
With the a score line of 16:16 at the break, the big seven-goal gap from the first leg was still unaffected when the teams started the second half. But after a 9:3 run by Limoges to 27:22 up, the French side's hopes came alive. Still, it seemed too little, too late, as the gap was back to three (30:27) with only five minutes left. From that moment on Limoges were unleashed. Even a missed penalty shot from Maxime Ogando at 32:27 did not shock them and the ended the match on a decisive 6:1 run. In their first international season, the team of head coach Alberto Entrerrios next meets four-time EHF Champions League winners THW Kiel for a spot at the Maschinensucher EHF Finals 2025 in Hamburg.
GOG (DEN) vs Sport Lisboa e Benfica (POR) 34:31 (15:15)
GOG win 65:64 on aggregate
For the third time after 2020/21 and 2021/22, GOG have qualified for the quarter-finals of the EHF European League, and 2022 champions Benfica are out after two thrillers, despite travelling to Denmark with a 33:31 advantage from the first leg. Like the first leg a week ago, the match went back and forth, the lead almost changed every two minutes – but 11 minutes before the end, the gate to the quarter-finals seemed to be widely open for the Portuguese side, leading 27:25 and having an aggregate advantage of five goals.
But GOG, backed by a total of 10 goals from Norwegian centre back Tobias Grøndahl, turned the match around, and 68 seconds before the end, Hendrik Jakobsen secured the first three-goal advantage (33:30) GOG needed to make up for their first-leg deficit. Benfica got nervous, Ander Izquierdo failed to score, and GOG decided the match when 20-year-old Hjalte Lykke netted for 34:30. Egon Hanusz’s last goal for Benfica came too late and the hosts jumped for joy with the final buzzer. GOG are next up against 'neighbours' (and defending champions) SG Flensburg-Handewitt, which include several former GOG players, like (the currently injured) Simon Pytlick, Emil Jakobsen, and Lukas Jørgensen. The distance between the two clubs is only 120 kilometres.