Leslie Extremely Proud of his Girls

For Aalborg DH coach Jan Leslie, Sunday’s 34-24 win over Hypo Niederösterreich in the first quarterfinal was undoubtedly one of the greatest triumphs of his career. Nevertheless, he did not hesitate to give his players the credit for the fantastic result and performance when Eurohandball.com talked to him after the match.

Eurohandball.com: Before the match you said that your team could only cause positive surprise. However, it was probably not this kind of surprise you had in mind?

Jan Leslie: No, it was not. I am simply so proud of what the girls did today. They played really well, but at the same time we realise, of course, that the second leg in Austria will be a completely different kind of match.

Eurohandball.com: How would you explain the fact that you were so much better than Hypo today?

Jan Leslie: We simply took surprised them and it is pretty obvious that things get difficult once you are down 12-2. Hypo were in a hurry today. However, I think they came back fighting and managed to reduce our lead, and that is, of course, the attitude we expect from them in the second leg.

Eurohandball.com: Your team were underdogs before the match. There were also many injuries on top of all. Was it the feeling of not having any pressure that enabled your team to play so well?

Jan Leslie: Yes, it was. We all agreed that Hypo were favourites in this match, and furthermore, we did not know until the last night how many players were actually fit. Therefore, the players felt no pressure – they just agreed to do their best. And I must say they did.

Eurohandball.com: There is often a huge difference between playing at home and away in European competitions. We have often seen teams to lose ten goals or more. Under normal circumstances, however, your ten-goal lead should be enough to qualify for the semi-finals.

Jan Leslie: Time will tell. We start from 0-0 again on Friday, and we know that what Hypo did today was not what they are usually able to. We must expect more pressure from them. It is important that we are prepared for that.