ROUND PREVIEW: Five double-headers and 15 first-leg encounters will be played in the EHF European Cup Men from Friday to Sunday
While title holders AEK Athens try their luck in the EHF European League Men this season, two other Greek sides will meet in the only national derby in EHF European Cup Men qualification round 2 this weekend.
On Saturday, 2012 EHF Challenge Cup winners AC Diomidis Argous will host Bianco Monte Drama 1986 in Nea Krios, with the return match to be played on 23 October in Drama.
- 14 more first-leg matches as well as five double-headers will be played this weekend, with seven games to be streamed live on EHFTV
- two Baltic clashes between Lithuanian and Estonian teams are among the first-leg games, as VHC Sviesa Vilnius host HC Tallinn on Saturday and Granitas-Karys take on Pölva Serviti on Sunday (live on EHFTV)
- six more double-headers are scheduled for the next weekend, on 23 and 24 October
- the matches between BK-46 Handboll (FIN) and SGAU-Saratov (RUS) were cancelled due to Covid-19 restrictions, with the Russian side progressing to the next stage
- five teams, PAOK (GRE), AHC Potaissa Turda (ROU), Victor (RUS), Talent t. Plzenskeho Kraja (CZE) and IFK Skovde (SWE) will enter the competition in round 3
SKA taking long voyage
Three-time European Champions Cup (predecessor of the EHF Champions League) winners and 2013 EHF Challenge Cup winners SKA Minsk are among the teams who are joining the race in round 2.
The Belarusian league runners-up are meeting FH Hafnarfjordur in this stage, and this weekend, SKA have to take a long voyage to Iceland to play the first-leg encounter on Saturday. The second-leg fixture will take place in Minsk on October 23.
TEXT:
EHF / Sergey Nikolaev