Paris clinch steely win over Zagreb
Handball•
Led by Mikkel Lovkvist, who was on fire in goal, Paris secured a fine victory against Zagreb (35-32) in a white-hot atmosphere at Coubertin. The capital club is back on track in Group B.
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With two defeats in three matches, Paris Saint-Germain hadn't had the best start to their Champions League campaign. Two weeks after a cruel defeat against Szeged (31-29), the capital club were determined to get back on track in Europe as they faced a Zagreb side in serious trouble, with three defeats in as many matches. A few days after another league victory, this was the ideal opportunity for Stefan Madsen's men to get back on track - in front of their faithful fans at Coubertin.
Les Rouge et Bleu got off to a good start with an early break by Sindre Heldal (3': 3-1). However, Zagreb proved tenacious and the match was a battle between two strong defences. The Croatians were quick to get back into the game after Elohim Prandi hit the crossbar (6': 4-4) but, in the electric atmosphere at Coubertin, it was the Parisians who came out on top in the early stages. Yahia Omar, who has been in fine form of late, managed tokeep his side ahead (10': 7-5).
Anchored by a red-hot Mikkel Lovkvist, Stefan Madsen's men continued to hammer away at the visiting defence. After a save by our Danish goalkeeper, Elohim Prandi scored his fourth goal of the match with a magnificent kung-fu to give his team a slightly more comfortable lead (11': 8-5). Shortly afterwards, Parisian scored another goal from a turnover and Zagreb boss Andrija Nikolic called a timeout to try to get his team back on track (12': 9-5). But even going a man down twice in quick succession, the capital club continued to dominate the game. Luc Steins confirmed the trend with a magnificent jinking run (16': 12-7).
The Parisians resisted the Croatian attacks, helped notably by the in-form Lovkvist, who treated the Coubertin crowd to a sixth spectacular save. And when Stefan Madsen decided to rotate his goalkeepers just after Zagreb had earned a penalty, Jannick Green also pulled off some impressive saves, allowing Les Rouge et Bleu to maintain a comfortable lead (21': 14-9). After two successive goals from Zagreb, the Parisian coach called his first timeout of the match (23': 14-11). As soon as play resumed, Mikkel Lovkvist, who had returned to goal, made his seventh save.
Solid in defence, the capital club maintained a three-goal lead for much of the first half, despite a second two-minute suspension for Luka Karabatic. Luc Steins scored a magnificent goal, lobbing the 'keeper to give his team the prospect of a comfortable end to the first half (28': 18-15). However, the formidable Croatians had not said their last word and managed to narrow the gap before the buzzer (30': 18-17). Paris were in front - but only by a narrow margin - in a tight and entertaining match.
On Thursday, Les Rouge et Bleus returned to winning ways on the continental stage by defeating Zagreb at the Stade Pierre de Coubertin (35-32). Check out the pick of the shots from this wonderful European evening!
Building on their momentum from the end of the first half, Andrija Nikolic's men started the second half strongly and soon equalised through Bialiauski (31': 18-18). Despite being a man down, the visitors even managed to take the lead for the first time in the match, once again through the Belarusian international (34': 19-20). This marked the start of several minutes of back-and-forth play, with neither team able to pull away. Zagreb right-back Luka Lovre Klarica took advantage of this to take his total to seven goals (36': 21-21), and the Croatians finally made the break with a successful penalty (40': 22-24).
Zagreb even took a three-goal lead, prompting Stefan Madsen to call a second timeout (41': 22-25). His players were sorely lacking cutting edge in the second half, with Mathieu Grébille notably hitting the crossbar with a powerful shot. The Croatians took advantage of this wayward period to increase their lead (43': 22-26) but the Parisians pushed forward, led by an excellent Ferran Solé, who helped them close the gap to two goals (48': 26-28). With the crowd at Coubertin at fever pitch, Les Rouge et Bleus finally managed to equalise with the Spaniard's eighth goal of the game (55': 30-30).
The back-and-forth continued, but the capital club remained in touch as the atmosphere in the stands became deafening. In a tense final phase, with both teams pushing for victory, Lovkvist regained his effectiveness in goal - and his teammates regain the lead - just before the final whistle (59': 33-32). Les Rouge et Bleus held on to their lead, once again carried by their heroic goalkeeper, who denied Bialiauski's penalty with an increedible 11th save of the match.
Paris sealed the deal with 20 seconds to go thanks to substitute Wallem Peleka, and wrapped things up moments later with a lightning counter-attack from Ferran Solé, who bagged his tenth and final goal of the match (60': 35-32). It was a steely victory that allowed Stefan Madsen's men to get back on track in Group B. This Sunday, they will return toleague action at Coubertin looking to confirm this positive momentum as they take on Sélestat.
🎙️ Après #PSGZAG (35-32) découvrez les réactions de Stefan Madsen & Wallem Peleka ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/Re75kOpIUW
— PSG Handball (@psghand) October 9, 2025
