LNH Proligue, Round 18

ANGERS SCO HANDBALL VS BILLÈRE HANDBALL PAU PYRÉNÉES 16/02/2024 CET 19:30

A break ?
Billère, now in 6th place with 16 points, is still in fine form. They just can't stop winning. Their attacking game is undermining all opposing defenses. As demonstrated by their masterful victory over Besançon 29-23. This time, they travel to Angers, a team in difficulty. They are on an 8-game winless run. But their new plan is to give Billère a run for their money.

Indeed, the 1-5 proposed by Issam Tej will disrupt the great movements that the Palois can have in their attacking palette. And the fact that they often play with 3 right-handed players at the back could force Hichem Daoud into the game if Angers turn the pressure on him. Possible but not certain, as he'll find himself in front of Angers' weakest one-on-one defender, Swan Lemarié. Billère's timings and movements should therefore be reduced by this system. But it will also open up space for Valentin Doudeau to initiate strong periods of one-on-one play. But Fares Ghoul's ability to manage duels in 2 or 3 high will reduce this possibility of winning only on a first strong period. So if Angers manage to reduce the continuity of the Palois game, the match could turn in their favor.

In defense, however, we can imagine that Billére's players will be tightening up around the aforementioned pivot. Valentin Tarrico will be keen to prove his worth against his former club, alongside his mentor Alecandre Aguilar. This central pairing leaves plenty of scope for long-distance shooters in the middle. But the defense on the outside is intractable. We should therefore see Ahmed Abdelhak or Swan Lemarié as their team's top scorers. The two Angevins full-backs will have plenty of freedom in the middle to adjust the opposing goalkeeper.

So, as we said earlier, we're expecting a surprise Angevine victory of around 30 goals in a tight game.


GRAND BESANÇON DOUBS HANDBALL VS VALENCE HANDBALL 16/02/2024 CET 19:30

For a breath of fresh air
The winner of this confrontation will take a deep breath and move away from the relegation zone. Besançon, currently 13th with 11 points, hosts Valence, 10th with 12 points. The battle for survival is intense. With Caen finally tightening ranks with their impressive victory against Nancy, these head-to-head matches are worth four points. While Besançon struggled in Billère with a 29-23 defeat, Valence benefited from Villeurbanne's general forfeit. However, disrupting the rhythm at this point in the season may not necessarily be beneficial. It will take time for them to get back into match mode, whereas Besançon continues without much fatigue, of course.

As with every match against Valence, the key is maintaining the tempo of the game and avoiding getting caught up in their excessively long preparation time. It's old-school handball. However, Besançon mustn't get frustrated. They may feel like they spend very little time with the ball in hand and in attack, but they need to manage their emotions. The return of Martin Petiot, who scored 6 goals in the last match, should benefit them and bring his experience to these encounters. But the player who should shine in this matchup is Lucas Jametal. He didn't contribute much in the last game but needs to make up for it against the opposing defensive weaknesses in one-on-one situations. Coupled with Besançon's usual good ball control, the match should tilt in their favor.

On the other side of the field, Valence will continue their triggering game and large movements. However, their success is likely to come from Bilal Ben Brahim inside the defense. He's very effective in gaining position and should exploit Besançon's difficulties in defending against the pivot. However, this alone might not be enough.

Therefore, we expect a victory for Besançon in a slow-paced, tight match that won't exceed 28 goals.


CAEN HANDBALL VS ISTRES PROVENCE HANDBALL
18/02/2024 - CET 14:00

A new dynamic ?
Caen put in a great performance against Nancy with a comprehensive 27-21 victory. They are currently bottom of the table with 8 points, 2 points off the relegation places. But the team they're up against isn't the easiest to maintain that momentum. The only thing they can really hope for is a lack of consistency in Istré's play. Both from match to match and within the same match, as we saw last weekend. Leading 18-10 at the 32nd minute, they managed to catch up. In the end, they finished 27-27 against Sélestat. A complicated match awaits Caen if Istres can recover from their disappointment.

In attack, Istres relied on one-on-one play with little continuity. They struggled to make more than 3 passes after the opening period. But the dueling skills of their young center-half, 21-year-old Lubin Gensoulen, meant they often won the first strong period. Although he still struggles to get the most out of his work with the others, he often ends up alone 6 meters out after his one-on-ones. The same goes for left-back Toke Schroder, who can also force his shots. But his shooting ability means he could score 10 goals a game. The weaknesses of Caen's axial defense should be put to the test against these players. And if the difference isn't made centrally, it could be through the work of pivot Geoffroy Carabasse under the depth of the post 2s. Caen will therefore find it hard to annihilate the Istré attack.

On the other hand, the new style of play they showed against Nancy suggests that they can be successful offensively. Their wide- ranging movement puts Allan Villeminot in good shooting positions. Their movement also gives Jordan Allais the time to move inside and offer solutions to his partners. Be careful, though, as he was injured last time out. He could well miss this match.

Unsurprisingly, Istres should win at Caen in an open match with over 30 goals.


MASSY ESSONNE HB VS TREMBLAY-EN-FRANCE HANDBALL 16/02/2024 CET 19:30 PM

Beautiful Paris region
Massy certainly know how to play handball well. They proved it time and time again with a fine 32-31 win at Frontignan. A small feat that may no longer be a feat. They've also shown that they know how to train and develop great players, giving their youngsters plenty of playing time. Hugo Jullian may not be one of their own, but their 23-year-old centre-half scored 11 against the league's best goalkeeper. But as for Caen, it's a different kettle of fish when they take on Tremblay, the undisputed league leaders. And it's not the length of the journey that should pose a problem. Beware, however, of Parisian traffic jams.
Young Antoine Sol, Massy's pivot, has brought stability to the Massy defense since Guynel Pintor's long-term injury. He's very effective on the man. He just needs to develop his reading and linking skills to succeed in defending while remaining balanced. But Tremblay's movements, combined with the quality of each player in the position, mean that this young player runs the risk of getting involved in all the high points and therefore finding himself unbalanced or behind in the various crosses. Antoine Léger and Javier Borragan, the two right-backs, will be able to feast on the center following their partners' work. Tremblay's prolific attack should continue to make a difference in all areas of the game.
Defensively, their low central defense always leaves room for long-range shooters. But in the long run, they have the assurance that the relationship against the goalkeeper will make the difference. And this time it came from second goalkeeper Pierre Rubens and his 15 saves in just 36 minutes. He single-handedly turned around a game that was in a bad way. What's more, he disgusted his opponents with 3 saved penalties. Given our analysis, Massy's left-back Thibaut Chevalier should be the top scorer thanks to his long-range shooting ability. But that's not likely to be enough.
And so Tremblay will undeniably widen the gap as the minutes go by, winning by a 5-goal margin at the finish. They should surpass the 34-goal mark.


NANCY HANDBALL VS PONTAULT-COMBAULT HANDBALL 16/02/2024 CET 19:00

Temporary weaknesses ?
Pontault-Combault finally got back into the limelight after beating Angers 25-20. But it was an extremely complicated match. You can tell they're still sick and nothing is easy. Their hypersonic game is gone. Only their defense is still in control. But their attack has been lacking in recent months. And what about Nancy? With their top-quality squad, they're doing nothing. Every player in the team could be scoring 6 goals on a regular basis, yet they were stuck with 21 goals in Caen. And that's against the bottom of the league. Only Rohnan Conte-Prat stood out with 8 goals, almost half his team's total.

What a disappointment to see players of this quality playing at this level. Let's be careful that the descent in the Proligue rankings isn't too harsh. They're still in 8th place with 15 points. But let's not forget that individual qualities aren't everything in this championship: you have to be able to play as a team and want to play for your team-mates. But there's no sense of cohesion in this team. Their attack is simple: a strong time on a predefined move, either the player forces the situation or the strong time is stopped. And it will resume after 3 passes without commitment before another player forces the situation of shoots or relationship with the pivot. Pontault, with one of the best defences in the league, could hold Nancy to less than 20 goals at home. That would be quite a feat in modern handball. And it's not their lack of speed on the fast break that should help them score.

As for the other side of the pitch, Pontault should be able to play freely. They should therefore be able to regain their self-confidence. Indeed, Nancy are relevant in defence, but only when there's a danger. Otherwise, the players have no intention of getting in front of their opponents or disrupting their timing. Arthur Muller's absence can be detrimental in this respect. After all, we know his ability to score from distance when set in motion. But Thomas Toupance's quality should make all the difference against this defense.
The match should therefore end in victory for Pontault-Combault. The latter should not exceed 28 goals either.


SARREBOURG MOSELLE SUD HANDBALL VS HANDBALL CLUB COURNON D’AUVERGNE - 17/02/2024 CET 19:30 PM

Was it a stoppage ?
Sarrebourg, who had been winning non-stop, finally stopped. And they did so in a quality match against the league leaders. They held them off for half a minute before hitting a wall. And that wall was Pierre Rubens, with 15 saves at a 51% success rate in 36 minutes. What an outstanding performance. Will this discourage Sarrebourg? We don't think so, as there are still many positive lessons to be learned from this match. And this time they face Cournon, who were surprised at home by Cherbourg. The result was a 30-26 defeat. The two teams are currently level on points with 12 on the board. The winner of this clash will be in with a chance of staying in the top flight.
But we think Sarrebourg can still do it. Admittedly, their game isn't wide enough to make the most of Cournon's movement weaknesses. But Marius Randriantseheno's sharp duels should give Robin Dourte a run for his money. Indeed, Marius doesn't need much space either, thanks to his finishing ability behind the defender in one-on-one situations. And for Sarrebourg's continued performance, it's worth noting the important return of their captain Dylan Grandjean. He'll bring another string to Marius' bow, and an equally consistent commitment. He knows how to put his guts on the pitch to get the decision. It's easy to see his USAM background. Sarrebourg should therefore succeed in piercing the Auvergne defense.
On the other side of the pitch, the criss-crossing play around Robin Dourte in the central defensive axis was a real success. The pivot creates a real focal point. At 2.07m tall, defenders prefer to get behind him and push him back to defend. But this opens the door to shooters like Lagier Pitre, who can leap onto a support, or Matéo Grosjean, who despite his small size can shoot right past defenders. So he regularly surprises the keeper. In the long run, however, we think that Sarrebourg goalkeeper Hugo Kriszt will make the difference as the game progresses.
So we're expecting a Sarrebourg victory in a game of over 30 goals. And that with a gap of 4 or 5 goals at the finish.


SÉLESTAT ALSACE HANDBALL VS JS CHERBOURGEOISE MANCHE HB - 16/07/2024 CET 19:30 PM

Second place in sight
Sélestat have their sights set on second place. Now level on points with Pontault-Combault, they're waiting for a slip-up to put them back in front. The Alsatians will arrive with great confidence. After all, they overcame an 8-goal deficit in 28 games to draw level with Istres. Suffice to say, their morale is buoyed by such a remarkable comeback. They face a confident Cherbourg team. The latter have won 3 of their last 5 matches. And that includes this latest victory at Cournon 30-26. So they're holding their own in this championship. We can even imagine them thinking about the playoffs with a bit of success.
However, Sélestat will have to watch out for the absence of Hugo Pimenta. We don't know the nature of his injury, but his absence was understandably noticeable in the last match. Now, to replace him, Sélestat can rely on one of this championship's most reliable players, Quentin Heymann. He may be in a different league, but his qualities are well suited to Cherbourg's weaknesses: they really struggle to make an impact deep in the center of their defense. As a result, the forwards can express themselves from long range in front of the opposing keeper. In the end, it's up to them to win their duel with Nicolas Gauthier, Cherbourg's keeper and one of this championship's best players. At the same time, Grégoire Plat is another player who should stand out for his shooting ability. If he can get his team-mates on track, he should also be able to exploit the weaknesses of his opponents. Sélestat should therefore find it easy to make the difference offensively.
And defensively, it won't be easy to deal with Nicolas Bono, the opposing centre-half, but they'll be able to deal with the other players. And above all, the strong relationship with pivot Paul Louis Guiraudou, scorer of 9 goals the previous weekend. No doubt Laurent Busselier will have spotted this key point. His players should therefore flatten out and tighten up around the pivot. This will leave the door open for his son, Cherbourg right-back Yannis Busselier. But that should be enough to keep Cherbourg behind them.
We therefore expect Sélestat to win by a 7-goal margin, with more than 32 goals on the scoreboard.