Can PPD Zagreb fight against unstoppable Vardar?
Croatian champions PPD Zagreb are coming to Skopje to play Vardar on Tuesday (17.30 CET). Vardar will surely be fully motivated after a CL win over Barcelona which means they will enter the match with just one tought on their mind - victory.
Teams already met each other once this season in Skopje a few weeks ago but in EHF Champion League with "Red&Black" claiming a clear 28:21 win. Last season PPD Zagreb could be proud to be the only team that defeated Vardar in SEHA Gazprom season. And not just in SEHA Gazprom League but also in EHF Champion League match ending winning series of Macedonian team. Vardar have winning series of ten matches in SEHA Gazprom League, all the way back from December 2016, and ten games in the new season without a single win.
PPD Zagreb had a difficult month, played four matches reaching one win in SEHA Gazprom League versus Metalurg, and one draw in EHF CL versus Wisla Plock. For PPD Zagreb this will be the last game in October and the team will travel to Skopje to make another surprise, if it’s possible.
Raul Gonzalez, Vardar coach:
In our last meeting both teams played a high intensity match in EHF Champions League. As you remember, we didn’t start it well and they led by 3-4 goals in early stage of the game. Maybe we are favorites to win again, but we have to prove it on the court. We have to be prepared well since we have some injured players, but we also know it will be a very, very tough game.
Stojance Stoilov, Vardar player:
Tomorrow we will play against a team that is well familiar. Our first meeting this season was only a few weeks ago. We know that we have favorite role, which means that we have to win all games in front of our fans. We also know it will not be an easy task, but it is our obligation and I believe that we can do it.
Kasim Kamenica, PPD Zagreb coach:
We still remeber our recent duel against Vardar where we lost with a bigger difference although in some parts of the game we were good. We played on Thursday in Germany in EHF CL, and Vardar had a hard match with Barcelona on Saturday. We had two more days to prepare. We will try to give as much as we can. Damir Bicanic and Zarko Markovic are in a full training process, and that gives us more opportunities in the game. We will be fully focused and motivated for a good result.
Mario Vuglac, PPD Zagreb player:
We expect to play a good match. They've managed to beat us in the last match but we'll wait for our chance. I believe we'll use our chance this time.