Will the Zebras prevail against the Scandinavian side?
It’s not as if there aren’t already enough top-class games in the Handball Bundesliga. In the Champions League, there are usually much fattier games waiting to be played.
One of these will be THW Kiel’s guests at the Wunderino Arena on Wednesday. The Danish top club Aalborg Handbold will come to the Förde with numerous world-class players.
At the moment, things are not looking too good for the Zebras in the Group B table of this Champions League. After five games, Filip Jicha’s team has just 4:6 points on their account. The targeted second place, which would be enough for direct entry into the quarter-finals, is currently a long way off. The first thing they have to do now is to at least reach a position between third and sixth place in order to advance to the round of 16.
For the Danes from Aalborg Handbold, things look a bit better. They currently have 6:4 points. This puts Stefan Madsen’s team in fourth place, one place ahead of Kiel. The bookmakers expect a close game and are rather cautious with a forecast for the match between THW Kiel and Aalborg.
It might make sense to use a bonus in such a close match to reduce the risk significantly. But back to handball. The Zebras have to win this match to avoid being forced into action. Especially at home, the German cup winners are a power this season and that’s why we tend to place a tip on a home win between THW Kiel and Aalborg.
THW Kiel – Statistics & current form
For THW Kiel it is currently very difficult to compensate for the many notable absences. Every break is welcome, on the one hand to replenish the battered batteries and on the other hand to hope for a comeback of one or the other player. All in all, however, things are still going quite well for the Zebras, at least at national level.
Undefeated home Zebras
In the Bundesliga, Filip Jicha’s team is currently 14:2 points, one minus point behind the leaders Füchse Berlin. In the cup, they also had no trouble in beating the second-division team in Potsdam. But if there are problems, then it’s more likely to be away from home, where the Kielers have been badly beaten in Berlin and Nantes, among other places.
After all, things are going much better at home. With six games from six home matches, their record at the Wunderino Arena is flawless. Among others, there were victories against the Rhein-Neckar Löwen or Pick Szeged. Therefore, we can imagine playing the odds on another home win between THW Kiel and Aalborg. However, Kiel last had to play in Nantes last week. There, Filip Jicha’s team conceded a hefty 30:38 defeat.
The Zebras are still missing numerous important players. Sander Sagosen, Hendrik Pekeler and Sven Ehrig are out of action for months. There is some hope that Rune Dahmke (torn muscle fibre) and Magnus Landin (abdominal trauma) will return soon. However, the two outfield players will probably not be an option against Aalborg Handbold either.
Anticipated line-up of THW Kiel:
N. Landin, Mrkva – Battermann, Bilyk, Duvnjak, Ekberg, Fraatz, Johansson, Överby, Pabst, Reinkind, Schwormstede, Wallinius, Weinhold, Wiencek, Zarabec – Coach: Jicha
Last matches played by THW Kiel:
Champions League Grp. B
28/10/2022 – HBC Nantes 38 – 30 THW Kiel
Bundesliga
23/10/2022 – THW Kiel 32 – 29 Rhein-Neckar-Löwen
09/10/2022 – Füchse Berlin 34 – 26 THW Kiel
Champions League Grp. B
07/10/2022 – Vive Kielce 40 – 37 THW Kiel
Bundesliga
02/10/2022 – THW Kiel 40 – 28 HSV Hamburg
Aalborg – Statistics & current form
Aalborg Handbold is a team with very big ambitions. The ex-Kieler Aron Palmarsson came to Denmark from Barcelona last year. Before this season, Danish superstar Mikkel Hansen returned home. Anything less than participation in the Final Four of the Champions League would certainly be a disappointment given the financial outlay.
Danish goalscorers
The second big goal is to dethrone GOG as Danish champions. Currently, Stefan Madsen’s team is top of the national league with 17:1 points. Their great rivals, however, are only one minus point behind. You can’t complain about the Danes’ form at the moment. They have won six of their last seven games and only lost to Barcelona, who are the champions of the top division.
This weekend showed again that Aalborg has an incredibly strong offensive. In the Champions League alone, they scored an average of 34 goals per game. Stefan Madsen’s team won 44:39 against Frederica, which makes it sound very clear that Mach can also predict more than 64.5 goals in the THW Kiel versus Aalborg clash.
The Danes, however, are not completely free from injury. Keeper Mikael Aggefors had to miss the last two games. It is likely that he will not be enough for the match in Kiel either. In addition, Martin Larsen, a powerful shooter from the back, will be missing. However, the Scandinavian selection from Aalborg should be able to compensate for the two absences.
Predicted line-up of Aalborg:
Gade, Ladefoged – Antonsen, Barthold, Björnsen, Claar, Flodman, Hansen, Hoxer, Jakobsen, Klöve, Ludvigsen, Möllgaard, Nielsen, Palmarsson, Sandell – Coach: Madsen
Last matches played by Aalborg:
Mens Handball League
29/10/2022 – Aalborg Handball 44 – 39 Fredericia HK
Champions League Grp. B
27/10/2022 – Aalborg Handball 33 – 39 Barcelona
Mens Handball League
22/10/2022 – SönderjyskE 33 – 36 Aalborg Handball
09/10/2022 – Aalborg Handball 35 – 29 HC Midtjylland
Champions League Grp. B
06/10/2022 – Pick Szeged 29 – 41 Aalborg Handball
THW Kiel – Aalborg Direct comparison / H2H-balance
To date, the teams from Kiel and Aalborg have been drawn against each other three times in the Champions League. This circumstance has resulted in six direct duels to date, in which the home teams have usually had the better end on their side. The direct comparison is 4:2 in favour of the Zebras, who in addition to three home victories have also celebrated the only away victory in these duels.
Last season, both teams met in the group stage. Aalborg secured first place ahead of the Zebras. Both clubs went straight into the quarter-finals. The Kielers won the first leg 31:28 in their own arena, but the Danes took revenge in the second leg when Aalborg prevailed 35:33.
THW Kiel – Aalborg Tip
The spectators in the Wunderino Arena can expect a spectacular match between two world-class teams. Many Danes will also make the short journey to Kiel, so the atmosphere will certainly be great. We can’t really identify a real favourite in this duel.
Kiel are missing some important players, but nevertheless they have won all six home games this season. Therefore, Filip Jicha’s team will do everything to confirm this series. Moreover, two points would be extremely important in the fight for the ranking.
We expect an extremely high number of goals to be scored in this match. Both teams have strong throwers from the back. There is a tendency to score more than 64.5 goals. However, we are sticking with our bet on the outcome of the match in this encounter. We think it can be close, but we have decided to play the betting odds on a success for the Zebras between THW Kiel and Aalborg.
