Two more SEHA - Gazprom League Final 4 spots are up for grabs and Vardar 1961 will host Nexe Nasice in an encounter from which the winner will join Telekom Veszprem and PPD Zagreb on the prestige tournament in Zadar.

Two teams already met 24 times in the SEHA - Gazprom League with Macedonians securing 16 victories, Nexe reaching seven and one match ending with a draw. What is interesting is that Croatian runners-up celebrated in the last three encounters between the two teams with Vardar’s last win dating all the way back to February of 2021.

The busy summer transfer period is behind both teams. Nexe parted ways with their best player from last season – Croatian national team player Halil Jaganjac. New reinforcements for the season are right back, Ivan Srsen and line player, Marko Racic. Left winger, Karlo Godec is also back after spending the second part of last season in France.

When it comes to Vardar 1961, Dejan Manaskov arrived to replace Timur Dibirov who left for PPD Zagreb as Macedonians promoted some players from the academy which means new coach Vlado Nedanovski will have a tough job of making sure every player gets the opportunity to show what he is capable of. The preparation period is over and on Tuesday, 23 August – the real deal starts. The match is scheduled for 20:15 CEST so make sure to tune in!

Vlado Nedanovski, Vardar 1961 coach:
During the preparation period, we were constantly thinking about this first match of the season against Nexe. I can say Nexe is a good team which was not more than two months ago participating in EHF European League final tournament. The roster is pretty much the same, meaning they know each other quite well. We know a lot about them and I expect this to be a really good match. We’re still experiencing quite a lot of ups and downs mainly struggling with rotation. We have to be patient and give these younger players a chance to show what they are capable of.

Stojance Stoilov, Vardar 1961 player:
We know Nexe well and respect them as a team. We haven’t managed to defeat them at the beginning of the season, but in one match – everything is possible. We’ve prepared the best we could and I hope we’ll win this one with our fans behind us.

Branko Tamse, Nexe coach:
We’re playing two-time European champions on Tuesday which means we’ll surely enter the match with a lot of respect but also determined to show what we’re capable of. We’ve had a lot of both good and bad moments in the preparations but I hope we’ll be on top of our game on Tuesday when it matters the most. The goal is of course to secure a trip to Zadar. When it comes to injuries – we won’t be able to count on all players in Skopje but I’m sure that available ones will give their best for us to deliver a solid performance and secure a win.

Janko Kevic, Nexe player:
I feel like a really good preparation period is now behind us. Now it is time for the quarter-final encounter in the SEHA - Gazprom League and we are entering the match full of confidence that we can book a place in Zadar. We’re slowly catching the right rhythm – obviously, it is impossible to get everything to function in the best possible way immediately but we’re doing a good job. We’re all eager to show our best handball on Tuesday, I can even say we are getting a bit nervous – in a good way of course. We have a wide roster this season which will, in my opinion, be our great strength down the stretch.

Photo credit: kolektiffimages