Today in Vienna draw for EHF Velux Champions League take place, 16 teams spread in 4 pots. We already talk about last year champion Bundesliga giant Flensburg-Handewitt having a heavy task in front of them because they lost in last round against Vardar. Well their nightmare come true, since they drawn to play against their Bundesliga opponent THW Kiel.
In last 16 we will have re-match from last year EHF Velux Champions League final game between Flensburg-Handewitt and THW Kiel. Chairman of the EHF Competition Commission Leopold Kalin and EHF Secretary General Michael Wiederer carried the draw today. From the first and fourth pots first draw was Veszprem (Hungary) vs. Naturhouse La Rioja (Spain), after that Montpellier (France) drawn to play against Tauron Kielce (Poland) and then it was clear that we will watch re-match of last year final game. Since the only rule that teams cannot play against each other if they were in the same group, that move Denmark team Aalborg to face Barcelona and leave two German clubs to go head-to-head, Flensburg-Handewitt and THW Kiel.
From second and third pot first pair that get drawn was France LNH duel between Dunkerque and Paris Saint-Germain. Behind them we saw a draw from two teams that manage to beat Bundesliga teams in last round, HC Vardar (Macedonia) and Orlen Wisla Plock (Poland). In “third round” German Rhein-Neckar Lowen drawn to play against MOL-Pick Szeged (Hungary) and as last pair we got RK Prvo Plinarsko Drustvo Zagreb (Croatia) and KIF Kolding Kobenhavn (Denmark).
Since German duel is the most interesting game of round 16 we got statements from Flensburg-Handewitt and THW Kiel. Manager of Flensburg-Handewitt Dierk Schmaschke said that nobody wants to have this match this early, but he already had the feeling that this would happen. He knows that THW Kiel is probably one of strongest team in the world but they will fight for their fans and keep hope alive. Sabine Holdorf-Schaust director of THW Kiel said that it is always unlucky draw if two teams from same country face each other in international competition and that they hope for last year re-match to happen in later stage of the Champions League.
First games will play between 11-15 March and return games 18-22 March, final draw looks like this:
Naturhouse La Rioja (ESP) vs. MKB-MVM Veszprem (HUN)
Montpellier HB (FRA) vs. Vive Tauron Kielce (POL)
Aalborg Handball (DEN) vs. FC Barcelona (ESP)
SG Flensburg-Handewitt (GER) vs. THW Kiel (GER)
Dunkerque (FRA) vs. Paris Saint-Germain (FRA)
Orlen Wisla Plock (POL) vs. HC Vardar (MKD)
RK Prvo Plinarsko Drustvo Zagreb (CRO) vs. KIF Kolding Kobenhavn (DEN)
Rhein-Neckar Lowen (GER) vs. MOL-Pick Szeged (HUN)
EHF Velux Champions League draw, chance for Kiel to revenge for last year loss in finals against Flensburg-Handewitt.
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