Will Marseille advance to the Final Eight?

At the weekend, the national teams in water polo were still in focus. It was all about the qualification for the European Championships in Croatia in autumn. Germany and France were up against Belgium, the hosts Slovenia and Switzerland in their group and secured the first two places with ease and are thus qualified for the European Championship.

On Tuesday, however, the focus is back on the Champions League. In the group phase, the tenth matchday in the group of eight is on the agenda. The German internationals from Hannover will once again have to deal with some players from France, as CN Marseille will be guests in the Stadionbad. There is much more at stake for Waspo than for the guests.

In the table, the Lower Saxons are still in fifth place with eleven points. However, only the best four teams in each group qualify for the Final Eight in Belgrade. The German champions have three points to make up on the Hungarians from OSC Budapest. However, in the duel between Hanover and Marseille on Tuesday, the forecast clearly goes in favour of a victory for the visitors.

Marseille are second and have 24 points. With an away win, the French would already punch their ticket to the Final Eight.

Hannover – statistics & current form

It is two pairs of shoes whether Waspo Hannover compete in the German Bundesliga Pro A or play in the Champions League. At national level, the team from Lower Saxony together with Spandau 04 are so far ahead of the competition that all German titles can only go to these two teams. Hannover has also had a flawless season so far in the Bundesliga.

The chance to reach the Final Eight is alive

Eight wins from eight games, but the top game against Spandau is still to come. Internationally, they have to deal with completely different calibres. Nevertheless, the Final Eight remains the big goal and Karsten Seehafer’s team still has every chance. A win on Tuesday against a top European team would be a bonus. Even a point would be a great thing.

However, one should not be so presumptuous as to expect a win. Last week, Waspo visited the defending champions Pro Recco in Milan, a team that is roughly on a par with Marseille. They suffered a clear 3:18 defeat. Even for water polo, there were worlds between the European top and the Lower Saxons in this match.

As late as Sunday, six Waspo players were still playing for the national team. For Kevin Götz, Moritz Schenkel, Fynn Schütze, Philip Kubisch, Niclas Schipper and Jan Rotermund, the break until the Champions League was very short. This is another reason why you should mainly look at the odds for an away win in the duel between Hannover and Marseille.

Predicted line-up of Hannover:
Schenkel, Götz – Corusic, Macan, Real, D. Brguljan, Radovic, Muslim, Nagaev, Kubisch, M. Brguljan, Schütze, Winkelhorst – Coach: Seehafer

Marseille – Statistics & current form

CN Marseille are still waiting for the big international successes, but Milos Scepanovic, who once achieved great success as a world-class player with Montenegro, has now brought in many players from the Balkans as coach of the French and thus put together a team with format.

Strong winning streak for the French

The French got off to a classic false start in the top flight, suffering their first defeat against Pro Recco on the very first matchday. Since then, there have been 13 wins in a row, eight of them in the Champions League. It sounds as if a prediction of success for the French in the clash between Hanover and Marseille on Tuesday is without alternative.

CN Marseille’s last match was also in Germany. A fortnight ago, they were guests of Spandau 04 in Berlin and basically only had problems in the second quarter. But at the end of the day it was enough for a sovereign 13:7 victory. If we place Spandau and Hanover at roughly the same level, then it becomes clear what the Lower Saxons can expect on Tuesday.

Even though Marseille have many players from the Balkans in their squad, a large part of the rest of the team consists of French national players who were also still in the water in the European Championship qualifiers at the weekend. Milos Scepanovic’s team also has six players on loan for the tournament in Slovenia, so both clubs had the same workload before Tuesday’s direct clash.

Predicted line-up of Marseille:
Lazovic, Hovhannysian – Cuckovic, Crousillat, Spaic, Prlainovic, Vernoux, Olivon, Bouet, Marion Vernoux, Kovacevic, Vanpeperstraete, Bodegas – Coach: Scepanovic

Hanover – Marseille Direct comparison / H2H-Balance

To date, Waspo Hannover and CN Marseille have only crossed paths three times. In 2015, 2019 and 2021 there were duels in the Champions League. In the direct comparison, the French are ahead with 2:1 victories. The only match in the Stadionbad Hannover also went to the Lower Saxons. However, it is difficult to deduce a home advantage from this.

The first leg in the current Champions League was played in Marseille in December. Until the break, the German champions held their own and were only two goals behind. The decision came in the third period when it was 10:6 for the French. Nevertheless, Hannover did very well and lost 10:13 in the end.

Hanover – MarseilleTipp

A win would be extremely important for the Lower Saxons to at least not lose any ground in the fight for fourth place. Even a point would be strong, because with Marseille, a team is visiting the Stadionbad that can perhaps even play for the title in the Champions League. With a win in Hanover, the French would at least make it to the Final Eight.

There are probably no major doubts, as CN have recently celebrated 13 wins in a row. Milos Scepanovic’s team is on a great run and the winning streak will probably continue after Tuesday’s match. We are pretty sure that you can bet on a win for the visitors in the match between Hanover and Marseille.

We even expect this match to be similar to the first leg. In fact, we also think a landslide victory for the French is possible, but we rather expect an away win with a three to four goal difference. That is why we have decided to play the betting odds on a handicap win (-3.5) for the visitors between Hannover and Marseille.