Knocking on the Final's door

Győr will receive Hypo for the second leg of the Champions League semi-final after a 26-25 away defeat. The result is encouraging for the Hungarians, but coach Csaba Konkoly knows that it will not be easy to reach the Final. Eurohandball.com talks to him.

Eurohandball.com: Győr performed well in Austria. Were you also satisfied with the team?

Csaba Konkoly: I have seen many mistakes in our game, especially in finishing. We missed clear chances and also long shots. Our defence, on the other hand, worked well from the 40th minute on. This was the time when we got on track and we even took the lead for a while.

Eurohandball.com: What do you think about the return game?

Csaba Konkoly: I expect a very difficult game. Many believe that we “only” need to win an obligatory home game, but we don’t want to listen to these voices. We must only concentrate on the preparation and we have to think as if we had many goals of disadvantage.

It won’t be easy as Hypo have a similarly good away record to Győr. They want to win here, so we have to encourage and motivate our players.

Eurohandball.com: Do you see improvement in the team respect to one year ago when you lost the semi-finals? Are you mature for the Final?

Csaba Konkoly: We are mature for the semi-finals and we are knocking on the door of the Final. Let’s not forget that the way here was not easy; there were times when Görbicz was missing from the team, for example.

During the past year, many of our players reached an international level. The core of the team remained unchanged, so we did not have to rebuild the squad.

We have reached this far and only small things will decide at this stage. Last year Hypo played the Final and we lost only by minimal difference on their court. This shows the strength of our team. I hope we can make it…

Eurohandball.com: What atmosphere do you expect at home?

Csaba Konkoly: The hall will be full; no more tickets are available. Those 200 who came with us for the first game created a fantastic atmosphere, so I hope they will support us once again.

I always say that they mean two or three goals more and we will need these goals now.

Of course, I don’t say that the Hypo stars will tremble in front of them – they are much better players than that –, but they can help us in difficult situations.