A 30:23 win against RK Zagreb, a 20:23 defeat against Nantes and a 28:32 defeat against FC Barcelona – these are the results of Industria Kielce in the first three rounds of the new season Champions League handball players. It was not necessary to sound the alarm yet, but to break the series of two matches it's always worth it without winning. Such an opportunity arose in the fourth round of the European competition, away against SC Magdeburg. With this team, Talant Dujshebayev's players were eliminated last season in the quarterfinals of the Champions League series penalty kicks.
Industria Kielce won the Champions League! Gigantic emotions at the end
The match was very fierce at the very beginning, but over time Industria Kielce began to gain the advantage and control the events on the court. The Polish runner-up team came to Magdeburg with a reduced squad, but they showed great defense, which allowed them to build and maintain a three- or four-goal advantage.
By the break, the Kielce team was leading 19:15, but what could be worrying was the poor performance of the goalkeepers. Throughout the first half, Miłosz Wałach and Sandro Mestrić defended only 1 out of 16 shots. On the other side, Sergey Hernandez made 7 of 26 shots.
The Polish team started the second half with another goal (20:15), but after a while the hosts reduced the advantage to three goals (21:18). They also had a penalty kick, but then, finally, Mestrić made a successful intervention. A moment later, the Croatian goalkeeper saved another shot from the seventh meter! However, Magdeburg finally achieved their goal and scored another goal. After 8.5 minutes of the second half it was 21:19 for the Kielce team.
From the beginning of the second half, Industria's offensive play had problems with carrying out successful actions, but they finally scored the 22nd goal after a counterattack initiated by Mestrić with a fantastic save. As the minutes passed, it was clear that both teams were beginning to feel the difficulties of the match. Fifteen minutes before the end match The Kielce team was leading 23:21.
Finally, the hosts reduced the deficit to one goal. Ten minutes before the end of the match it was only 24:23 for the Polish team and everything promised great nerves at the end. Fortunately, Dani Dujshebajew finally broke through and scored his 25th goal for Industria. Five minutes before the end of the match the score was 26:24.
And two minutes before the final siren, Sandro Mestrić made a fantastic save with the score 26:25, which made the Kielce players and the coaching staff euphoric. This was also the result 20 seconds before the end, when Dujshebayev took the timeout. Right after that, Dylan Nahi scored the goal that secured two points! It's true that Magdeburg scored a goal, but so what? The most important thing was one thing – Industria Kielce conquered GETEC Arena!
EHF Champions League group stage: SC Magdeburg – Industria Kielce 26:27 (15:19)
In the fifth round of the group stage of the Champions Handball League, Industria Kielce will play away against Kolstad Handball (October 17). Before that, she will face the league “Holy War” against Wisła Płock (October 13).