The Germans of Magdeburg won their fourth Champions League, the first since the establishment of the Final Four in 2010, beating Sunday in Cologne (30-29 after extra time) the Poles of Kielce, unfortunate finalists for the second year in a row.
The club from eastern Germany is making a masterstroke for its comeback in C1 after seven years of absence, two years after winning the European League (the second continental competition) and a few months after gleaning its second Rank Super Globe (the club world championship).
Previously titled in 1978, 1981 and 2002, he thwarted the odds at “home” at the Lanxess Arena by first dismissing the double Barcelona title holder in the semi-finals on penalties (2-1, 38-38) after snatching extra time six seconds from the end.
Then in the final against Kielce (beaten last year on penalties), who led for most of the match and had the ball to conquer their second Champions League (after 2016) after regulation time, missed by Alex Dujshebaev, yet his fatal weapon (8 goals).
Twenty seconds earlier, it was the Dane Michael Damgaard (6 goals) who had equalized (26-26) for Magdeburg, who can also thank the Dutchman Kay Smits (8 goals) and his goalkeeper Nikola Portner (8/27 ), author of several decisive stops in overtime.
Including one at the very beginning, fruitful a few seconds later by the Icelandic Gisli Kristjansson (27-26), back for this Final Four after a serious injury (6 goals on Sunday). And touched a shoulder in the semi-finals before returning on Sunday, his first name chanted by German supporters.
Led 30-28 with 1 min 30 sec remaining, Kielce, with his three Frenchmen (Tournat, Kounkoud and Nahi) trained by former Hispano-Soviet legend Talant Dujshebaev, had a penalty shootout but did not failed to find the fault in the German defense before Roman Sycko’s final free-kick was stopped by the wall.
The Poles led 22 to 20 before the match was interrupted, 12 min 20 sec from the end of regulation time, for about fifteen minutes after the discomfort of a journalist in the press gallery, who fell backwards before be evacuated unconscious by rescuers, AFP noted.
Neither the EHF, the European federation, nor the German authorities had communicated on his state of health at the start of the evening.
Barça, double defending champion, took third place by beating PSG (37-31), which did not reach the podium for the first time in six Final Four.
