Harsh CL-swatter at home: Paris St. Germain tatters discouraged SCM

SC Magdeburg has learned a lot from the Champions League. Coach Bennett Wiegert’s team lost significantly in their own hall against top French club Paris St. Germain. After two wins at the start, it is the first major setback for the SCM.

The German handball champions SC Magdeburg suffered their first defeat of the season. Coach Bennet Wiegert’s team lost 22:29 (10:18) against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League on Wednesday. After five victories in the Bundesliga and two successes in the premier class, SCM had no chance against the star ensemble from France, but still has every chance of progressing. The best Magdeburg thrower was national player Philipp Weber with seven goals. Four players were successful for the guests five times.

The fans created the dreaded atmosphere in the Getec Arena right from the start, but this didn’t inspire the team. The SCM had problems with the opponent’s offensive defense, Paris pulled away by four goals early on. It was 7:3 after just 13 minutes. Wiegert took his first time-out after 15 minutes. “More courage in everything we do,” he demanded. When things didn’t get better, he snapped: “Less individual actions!” His speeches were not fruitful, the air was out early. 18 of 23 attempts by the Parisians in the first 30 minutes ended up in the net.

PSG didn’t let up after the change and even increased their lead to ten goals. Goalkeeper Jannick Green, who was under contract with Magdeburg for eight years and until last summer, was able to distinguish himself a few times at his old place of work. The SCM made a real effort against last year’s quarter-finalists, but was ultimately one class worse.

The French were by no means in top form. PSG recently suffered a defeat in the domestic league against Fenix ??Toulouse for the first time since April 25, 2021. Superstar Nikola Karabatic also signed off on the day of the game because of a corona infection. The two best of the two groups of eight move directly into the quarter-finals. The teams in places three to six have to take the detour via the round of 16.