Next test for Bietigheim as group phase enters round 2

GROUP A

ES Besancon Feminin (FRA) vs Sola HK (NOR)
Saturday 15 January, 18:00 CET, live on EHFTV

• Besancon want to bounce back after losing their opener in Hungary last week; Sola did not play in round 1 as the match against Lokomotiva was rescheduled
• the teams have not met before in a European competition
• Besancon lost to Fleury Loiret 25:21 in the French league; Sola are coming off a convincing win against Flin: 43:25
• Besancon head coach Sébastien Mizoule: "We are facing a great handball team this weekend. I expect my team to react to our last results"
• Norway standout Camilla Herrem will lead Sola in the fight for the points
• from next season, Sola goalkeeper Tonje Lerstad will join Besancon

HC Lokomotiva Zagreb (CRO) vs Motherson Mosonmagyarovari KC (HUN)
Saturday 15 January, 18:00 CET, live on EHFTV

• the Hungarian team had a good competition opening, defeating Besancon 38:30, with Noémi Pásztor scoring seven goals
• Mosonmagyaróvár centre back Gabriella Tóth: "We have had both highs and lows in recent days: winning in the Europe League but losing in the Hungarian championship. Unfortunately, our performance and gameplay were inconsistent, which we cannot allow ourselves to continue.
• Lokomotiva, the youngest team in the group phase, will miss some regulars, including Stela Posavec and Dora Kalaus, due to injuries
• Lokomotiva are first in the Croatian league, alongside Podravka Vegeta
• Mosonmagyarovari played their second match in four days when they lost to Moyra-Budaörs 35:31 in the Hungarian league
• Lokomotiva coach Nenad Sostaric: “The Hungarian team is a great club, a professional team compared to us. We have problems with injuries and isolation, but the girls who will play on Saturday will give their best.”

GROUP B 

SG BBM Bietigheim (GER) vs CS Minaur Baia Mare (ROU)
Saturday 15 January, 16:00 CET, live on EHFTV

• both sides won in round 1: Bietigheim confirmed their credentials against titleholders Nantes while Baia Mare defeated Lubin
• Baia Mare won two of their three away games last season in the EHF European League Women, including at German side Thuringer HC
• Bietigheim won six games and lost four against Romanian teams in their European cups history
• Bietigheim are undefeated this season, securing 11 wins in the German league and three in the EHF European League Women
• both sides won their domestic league games on Wednesday: Baia Mare against CSM Deva (32:26) and Bietigheim against Leverkusen (25:17)

MKS Zaglebie Lubin (POL) vs Les Neptunes de Nantes (FRA)
Sunday 16 January, 16:00 CET, live on EHFTV

• both sides lost their group phase opener last week
• Nantes also played against a Polish side, MKS Perla Lublin, last season and secured two points
• the French outfit have never suffered two losses in a row in the second-tier European competition
• Lubin have won only once in eight tries against French teams, conceding six losses throughout their history in European competitions
• both Nantes, with a 28:25 home win against Dijon, and Lubin, who secured a 31:24 away win at Koszalin, won the midweek games in their domestic leagues

GROUP C

Storhamar Handball Elite (NOR) vs Handball Club Lada (RUS)
Saturday 15 January, 16:00 CET, live on EHFTV

• both teams opened the group stage with defeats: Storhamar at Magura (33:28), Lada at home against Herning-Ikast (27:24
• each team won the respective home game when they met in the EHF Cup group phase two seasons ago
• on Wednesday, Lada suffered their third straight defeat in the Russian league: 32:30 against Zvezda Zvenigorod
• Storhamar defeated Aker Topphandball in a high-scoring Norwegian league game, 36:31
• Storhamar also faced Russian opposition in the group phase last season, when they beat Astrakhanochka 33:28 at home

Herning-Ikast Håndbold (DEN) vs Magura Cisnadie (ROU)
Saturday 15 January, 18:00 CET, live on EHFTV

• it is the first meeting between the teams in European club competitions
• they both claimed victories in the opening encounters of the group stage, with Magura leading based on the better goal difference: +5 vs +3
• their 33:28 against Storhamar marked the first ever win for Magura in the group phase of a European club competition, after 12 defeats in the EHF Cup 2018/19 and 2019/20
• Herning-Ikast comfortably won their Danish league match on Wednesday: 31:20 against Ajax København

GROUP D

Chambray Touraine Handball (FRA) vs Viborg HK (DEN)
Saturday 15 January, 20:00 CET, live on EHFTV

• both teams play their first match in the current group phase after their round 1 fixtures had to be postponed
• for Viborg, it is even the first European match at all, as they were seeded directly into the group stage
• the Danish side, who are three-time EHF Champions League winners and three-time EHF Cup winners, are determined to claim another European title this season
• Chambray are playing their first European season
• they reached the group phase after eliminating Norwegian side Molde Elite 65:52 on aggregate in thre 

SCM Ramnicu Valcea (ROU) vs Váci NKSE (HUN)
Sunday 16 January, 14:00 CET, live on EHFTV

• Valcea and Vac, who have never faced each other before, play their first match of the group phase after the round 1 games in the group were postponed
• Valcea were playing in the DELO EHF Champions League last season
• Valcea left wing Corina Lupei: "Defence is our strong point and we hope it will make the difference in this match, as well. We have prepared well this week, including fast breaks"
• Vác have returned to the European League, after finishing bottom of their group last season
• Vác, who are ranked fifth in the Hungarian league, defeated Alba Fehervar KC 37:29 on Wednesday; also, third-placed Valcea beat CSU Stiinta Bucuresti in the Romanian league: 36:23