Two draws were recorded this round: In group D, between MRK Sesvete Triglav osiguranje and TATRAN Presov; in group G, between PGE Wybrzeze Gdansk and HC Eurofarm Pelister.
Picks of the week
GROUP F
Top scorers: Joachim Lying Als 5/6, Emil Grønbech Hansen 5/8, Emil Reinholdt Hansen 5/9 (TTH Holstebro); William Bogojevic 7/10, Alejandro Barbeito 7/11 (Sport Lisboa e Benfica)
Holstebro were in charge most of the match, allowing Benfica the upper hand only once in the second half, but in the end clinched only the narrowest of wins. Benfica’s defence transformed throughout the match, from having trouble to becoming a key weapon that kept the game close. Problems there early on were shown through the fact that all three of Holstebro’s opening goals came from right back Emil Grønbech Hansen, before line player Teis Horn added three in succession of his own. As Holstebro opened the first three-goal gap, 9:6 in the 15th, Benfica’s new coach Anders Hallberg called the first timeout.
Another new Swedish arrival at the Portuguese club, Tobias Thulin, had a great contest in goal against Gustavo Capdeville, who himself joined TTH from Benfica over the summer. But around the middle of the half, Benfica were still finding their way defensively and Thulin had faced more shots than his counterpart. Benfica did improve at their end of the court and the result was no goal from Holstebro from the 17th to 24th, which allowed Benfica to reduce the distance — and from there the score line rarely moved beyond one until the last seven minutes. Holstebro pulled away to lead 31:27 with three minutes on the clock, and that difference was enough to ensure the win despite a late surge from Benfica.
