Pick take the lead; Brest still without a point
After two victories in the last two home EHF Champions League Men matches against Pick Szeged, in 2017 and 2020, Meshkov Brest’s series came to an end on Wednesday.
The Belarusian champions remain on the bottom of group A as the only team without any point from three group matches. On the opposite end of the ranking, Pick are equal with Vardar on top, with five points.
The match winner for Pick was Imanol Garciandia Alustiza, who struck seven times after he had scored an overall of five goals in the two previous group matches.
GROUP A
HC Meshkov Brest (BLR) vs Pick Szeged (HUN) 25:28 (12:16)
- the 25:28 result against Szeged was Brest’s third defeat in the third match of this season and the third home loss in a row including last season’s quarter-final against Barcelona
- including the final tournament of the SEHA League, Brest have lost all five international matches under new coach Daniel Gordo
- until minute 24 and the score of 11:12, the match was quite equal, though the hosts never had the advantage
- when Dean Bombac (Pick’s second top scorer, with six goals) scored for 19:14 in minute 35, the advantage reached five goals for the first time
- though centre back Stas Skube put on an outstanding performance in terms of goals and assists, Brest lacked efficiency in attack and could not reduce the gap to less than three goals
A Spaniard decides the duel of two Spanish coaches
Imanol Garciandia Alustiza is the eighth Spanish player in the history of Pick Szeged — and funnily enough, this Spaniard decided the duel of the two Spanish coaches Juan Carlos Pastor (Szeged) and Daniel Gordo (Brest). Netting seven times from eight attempts, the 203 cm left-handed right back was the top scorer in Brest.
Garciandia Alustiza arrived from French side PAUC. Previously, he had played five seasons for La Rioja. At Szeged, he wants to fill the footsteps of his famous compatriot formerly occupying Pick’s right back: Jorge Maqueda (now at Veszprém).
It was a really tough game for me and for the team. The key was how we started the game, playing in defence and in attack. In the second half we had some problems, but we managed to get the win.
Our opponents did a good job at the start of the match. But we didn’t give in and tried to remain in the game as long as possible. I’m really proud of our youngsters who provided support to the core in these challenging times.
