Granollers stopped Nexe's run, Balatonfüred snatch first win

GROUP C

Balatonfüred KSE (HUN) vs Alpla HC Hard (AUT) 27:26 (13:15)

Balatonfüred's wish came true as they celebrated the first win of the group to keep alive their chances of progressing through to the Last 16. The Hungarian side was off to a good start leading by two but Nico Schnabl, Alpla's top scorer, returned his team to life and snatched the lead (7:6). With a few good saves by Golub Doknic, the Austrian side held onto their lead until Mihály Tóth responded with some saves to turn things in Balatonfüred's favour. In an interesting finish, with both teams having a lead in the last three minutes, the Hungarian side was the lucky one. Milan Gostovic scored four out of six last goals, including the most important last one for victory as Hard's last attack for an equaliser ended with the ball slipping from their hands.

Fraikin BM. Granollers (ESP) vs  RK Nexe (CRO) 25:22 (14:11)

After five straight wins, the Croatian side suffered their first defeat of the season. Granollers was determined to get their revenge after last week's defeat and right from the start went full speed. With Rangel Luan de Rosa being at almost 50 per cent save efficiency in the first half, it is no wonder the Spaniards were leading by four throughout most of the first half. Following first-half problems in defence, Nexe underperformed in the attack in the second, and were unable to fully catch up with the opponents. There was a spark of hope 10 minutes before the end when Dorian Markusic closed the gap to 17:18. but Esteban Salinas and Pol Valera Rovira responded with goals to seal the deal.

Sporting CP (POR) vs Skjern Handbold (DEN) 28:24 (13:13)

For the second time in one week Sporting stopped Skjern, taking over the third spot in the group before the winter break. Salvador Salvador and Francisco Costa lifted Sporting to the first lead of the game but a lack of concentration in attack midway through the first half saw Skjern go on a 3:0 goal run to tie the score. Sporting's goalkeeper, Manuel Gaspar, left only two days ago to Nantes, but Leonel Carlos Maciel delivered and was keeping his team in control while Skjern tried to make a comeback. Skjern came close, but in the last two minutes of the match, Étienne Mocquais and Francisco Costa cleared all doubts and set the final result.