Barça to build on seven-goal lead against Nantes

Barça Lassa have been determined all season to wipe out bad memories from last year, when they stumbled over eventual champions Montpellier HB in the Last 16.

The Spanish side have already gone one step further this time by reaching the quarter-final, and they are a strong favourite to take the next step as well: qualifying for the VELUX EHF FINAL4.

Barça won the first quarter-final leg away against HBC Nantes by seven goals. But the players and coach Xavi Pascual will be aware that last season’s finalists want to show a different performance when visiting Palau Blaugrana on Saturday.

QUARTER-FINAL, SECOND LEG

Barça Lassa (ESP) vs HBC Nantes (FRA)
Saturday 4 May, 19:30 hrs local time, live on ehfTV.com

• Barça won the first leg in Nantes 32:25, handing the French team their biggest CL defeat ever

• in their domestic leagues, Barça won 32:30 in Leon while Nantes have not played since the first leg

• Barça have not lost a CL home game since December 2015 (33:31 vs Kielce), and never by seven or more goals

• Nantes’ Valero Rivera (77) and Kiril Lazarov (72) are approaching the 80-goal mark for the CL season

• Rivera will return to Palau Blaugrana for the first time since leaving Barça in the summer of 2018

• Nantes have won just one away game this CL season; and they won an away game by at least eight goals only twice, most recently in the Last 16 vs Brest last season (32:24)

• the only previous visit from Nantes in Barcelona ended in a 31:25 victory for the home team, in the group phase last season