After kicking off the season by claiming the Trophée des Champions against Montpellier and then beating Chambéry to kick off the Starligue season, Les Rouge et Bleu began their Champions League campaign this Wednesday. On the cards was a tough opening clash away to Aalborg, who finished fourth in the last FINAL4. It promised to be a thrilling match, especially as the new EHF Champions League format makes every fixture all the more decisive.
Less than a month after facing each other in a pre-season friendly, the two sides met again at the Sparekassen Danmark Arena. Whilst the stakes were different, the atmosphere remained electric as ever. This was no cause for concern for our Rouge et Bleu, who showed stunning composure not only to hold their own against the Danes (5': 3–3), but also to take the lead (12': 6–7). Despite a few errors here and there, the Parisians reacted brilliantly whenever they lose possession.
Luc Steins won possession, Karl Konan hit on the counter, and Ferran Solé scored with cool composure (19': 9–12). And when it wasn’t the Spanish winger (5 from 5 at half-time), it was Yahia Omar putting on a show, with a splendid spin shot to extend the lead (24': 10–14). The battle grew in intensity as half-time approached, and while the home side pushed to get back into the game, Mikkel Lovkvist and Frederik Ladefoged pulled out all the stops to maintain a one-goal lead as the half-time buzzer sounded (30': 16–18).
After the break, Aalborg stepped up a gear and put the pressure on Les Rouge et Bleu. Having saved an initial attempt to equalise, Rodrigo Corrales couldn't prevent Patrick Larsen from levelling matters (37': 21–21). As the final quarter of an hour began, the capital club found themselves trailing the Scandinavians, who had swapped their fast-paced counter-attacking play for a game based on their physical superiority (45': 24–22). This tactical change paid off all the more as Niklas Landin was in inspired form in goal, saving attempts from Elohim, Wallem and Kamil in quick succession.
Only Ferran Solé continued to find space, scoring his ninth goal from as many attempts to keep Parisian hopes alive (52': 29–27). That hope lingered until the very last seconds, with Paris trailing by just one goal when Stefan Madsen called the final time-out with less than 30 seconds remaining. At the end of a nail-biting final possession, it was Ferran who came to his team’s rescue by scoring the equaliser from a 7-metre throw just as the buzzer sounded (60': 33–33). A well-deserved point for the capital club, who got their European campaign off to a flying start!
Having kicked off the season with away games in Aix-en-Provence (Trophée des Champions), Chambéry (Starligue), and Aalborg, Paris will finally return to the Stade Pierre de Coubertin this Saturday! Stefan Madsen’s men are hoping for a big turnout when Cesson-Rennes come calling for the Parisians' first home match of the season on Saturday at 20:00.
Ferran Solé: ten goals, Yahia Omar: six, Elohim Prandi: five, Bjarki Elisson: four, Kamil Syprzak, Frederik Ladefoged: three, Luka Karabatic, Wallem Peleka: one.
Karl Konan made sure to pay tribute to the PSG supporters who made the trip all the way to Denmark to cheer on our Parisians!
