“It’s a very emotional game for me”

If someone had asked Matej Mandic three months ago, he probably could hardly have imagined the current situation. But as life sometimes goes, everything happened very quickly. And so the 23-year-old goalkeeper is now not in goal for the Croatian champions, where he was actually planned for the season, but at SC Magdeburg.

“It’s a very emotional game for me and something very special,” said the Croatian, who was only brought to the Elbe by the Champions League winners at the end of August. Since then, he has won every game of the competition with Magdeburg and it should continue like that in the game in the GETEC Arena on Wednesday (20:45 CEST, tickets).

“It’s not easy to play against them, but we’re one of the best teams in Europe. If we show that on the pitch, we’ll get the two points,” Mandic looks ahead. However, he does not know whether he has an advantage against his old teammates: “I know every player, but they know me too – we’ll see how that turns out.”

Still without a point on the international stage, his former team travels to Magdeburg highly motivated in any case. Also because the last meeting between the two clubs was a 22-18 win in Zagreb. However, Mandic had nailed the Croatian goal with 20 saves.

Since then, the squad has changed not only because of his departure. Among the five additions are well-known names such as Igor Karacic (KS Kielce) and Giorgi Tskhovrebadze (VfL Gummersbach), while Timur Dibirov, a legend, has ended his handball career. In addition, Andrija Nikolic became coach again in May 2025 after former Bundesliga coach Velimir Petkovic led the team for six months.

“The game against Zagreb is a difficult task, like every Champions League game. At this level, you can’t just walk through anywhere. We are aware of the challenge and will do our best to get the next points and remain unbeaten,” says SCM coach Bennet Wiegert. “We are also playing at home and are looking forward to a great atmosphere. That always gives us extra energy.”