Patras the new surprise team?

Eurohandball.com talks to the coach of Ormi Patras, Zlatko Petronijevic. The Greek champions are very satisfied with taking the first place at the CL qualification Tournament 1 in Nis.

Patras surprised the favourite and home team Naisa. The Greek club showed that they have no problems with playing away - three matches, three clear victories. The next challenge will be the tournament in Estella with Itxako, Podravka Vegeta and Leipzig.

Eurohandball.com: Patras showed a strong defence. Were you surprised by defeating Naisa, the Serbian champions?

Zlatko Petronijevic: Yes indeed, we were surprised. It was a great victory for us, though we did not have much information on Naisa. We played in Vrnjacka Banja tournament prior to the CL qualification tournament in Nis. In general, it is more important to worry about my team then about our opponents. If we play every match like we did against Naisa, we will have no problems with the final result.

Eurohandball.com: In fact you continue with similarly good results to last season?

Zlatko Petronijevic: Yes, I came to Patras in March and we won both Greek titles, so I continued with the work.

Eurohandball.com: You have been involved in Greek handball for a long time. What is the Greek league like?

Zlatko Petronijevic: This is my eighth year working in Greece. In the past, Arte was the first team for years and they won the championships and cups every season. Patras broke this hierarchy and now we won both titles. There are four more good teams, but the rest are not so good.

Eurohandball.com: Last year nobody would have given a chance for Savehof to qualify, but the Swedish team won the QT1 and QT2 too. Can Ormi Patras be the surprise of this season?

Zlatko Petronijevic: My club has a solid background and we have an excellent team with great players. The atmosphere is superb and we are ready for all challenges. Our ambitions are to win both titles at home again and reach good result in the upcoming CL qualifications.