Winamax EHF Finals 2026 flash quotes: 31 May
HAMBURG — Comments from players and coaches at the Winamax EHF Finals 2026 on Sunday after MT Melsungen beat THW Kiel 24:23 (13:12) in the final, and SG Flensburg-Handewitt beat Montpellier Handball 32:30 (16:16) in the third-place match.
MT Melsungen
Roberto Parrondo (ESP) – head coach
On winning the title with Melsungen:
"I am just feeling happy for the fans, the team, the club, our families, I know how hard this moment is for Kiel. They are a great team, they will come back and will be successful and have better times. My family was suffering on the tribune, so this victory is also for the families of the players. This trophy is for my father and my father-in-law who died last year. I dedicate is also to Barbara Braun-Lüdecke [main sponsor, red.], she is helping us a lot since years.”
On the possibility to play in the EHF Champions League next season:
“If we play Champions League, this would be incredible, but we have to wait. I hope that the EHF will do as they told that the winners of the European League qualify for the Champions League.”
On MVP Nebojša Simić:
“Nebo was really good, especially against Flensburg, and again today, the defence worked with him. In handball, everybody knows how important the goalkeeper is. He had many crucial saves in both matches and was one of the reasons, why we have this trophy. He deserves the MVP trophy, but I always think about the whole team.”
Aaron Mensing (DEN) – left back
On winning the final against Kiel:
“This match was incredibly tough, a 50:50 match. One shot, one save could make the difference. I am so proud of this team, as we suffered a lot this season, we had a lot of injuries. To take this trophy is simply incredible.”
Dainis Kristopans (LAT) – right back
On winning the trophy against Kiel:
“It is crazy, simply crazy, it is amazing. The gold medal feels good, I have so many emotions, but I know, we deserve this trophy. We play so many big matches and competitions like in the German cup, when the others got the trophy, we were unlucky. Now we have this experience how it feels to win it. We got the opportunity to show who we are and we used it. The game was crazy. I say chapeau to my teammates and my coaches, for what they did in two days. We had prepared like no other teams. I am really happy.”
On teammate Nebojša Simić, the MVP:
“Nebojša is our special boy, this is no secret. He is our engine for emotions, he is a showman and can destroy opponents mentally.”
Florian Drosten (GER) – left wing
On winning the trophy with Melsungen:
"This gold medal is simply incredible. I don’t know what to say. You cannot describe it, this is the best emotion I ever had in handball. Both defence sides fought intensely and tough, Nebojša Simić found the key to lock the door – and he saved us this win. The party will be incredible. No one will sleep before sunrise, we will enjoy it.”
Timo Kastening (GER) – right wing
On winning the final:
“This trophy is such a relief for us and for me. I never won any title, so I am absolutely happy. To play European League is only fun, when you win it. Maybe I have my first ever Champions League season ahead. A dream would come true."
THW Kiel
Filip Jicha (CZE) – head coach
“We have huge respect for Roberto Parrondo and his entire team, congrats to this fight and the first title in the club history. You came to Hamburg very well-prepared. But also congratulate to my players, they played an extra-ordinary final, both teams were fighting like lions. Our beloved sport handball can be cruel sometimes, today you could not have two winners. Someone had to take this trophy. We did not score in the important moments, but every of my players tried everything. We are dealing with huge pain now. I am proud, how my players approached the weekend and the final. We are empty and sad.”
Gonzalo Pérez de Vargas (ESP) – goalkeeper
“When you play for Barcelona or Kiel, you know how important it is for those clubs to reach this stage and to win titles, but for Melsungen, this is a new situation. I am proud on our fight. We fought like a real team. One goal difference sometimes works, today not. We have to deal with the disappointment.”
Mykola Bilyk (AUT) – centre back
“It is hard to find the reason for a defeat, when you lose by one goal. Little things decided this match, like Simić in the goal. In final tournaments, goalkeeper and defence decide matches, this is what we saw today. Yesterday, Andy Wolff saved us the final, today, Melsungen were luckier than us and deserved to win.”
SG Flensburg-Handewitt
Aleš Pajovic (SLO) – head coach
On the match and the Winamax EHF Finals:
“We wanted to win the title, but it did not work. We were really disappointed yesterday and so it was not easy to motivate the team for a third place match, as it brings you nothing. We showed character, we showed fighting spirit, and I am happy to go home with a win. This tournament offered us a possibility to play Champions League next season, so this is double disappointment. But this is sport. We have to learn from that. We had a good season, but the last three games went down, I hope to do the next season much, much better.”
On losing three matches in a row (two in domestic league, and the semi-final):
“It is hard to find an answer. We had a good run until the league match against Magdeburg, we lost it unluckily. We were exhausted, After three defeats in tahe row, now we made a small step ahead by winning today.”
On his future as Flensburg coach:
“I still have a contract for one more season, but you saw in Berlin that you can lose your job even when you become German champion and reach the Champions League final. But my plan is to remain coach in Flensburg for the next season.”
Kevin Møller (DEN) – goalkeeper
On the third place match:
"We were one day too late. This is sport, at a tournament like this you have to be on 100 per cent on both days. We deserved to miss the final, today we deserved to win and we carry some medals home. I hate to lose, this is why it is fine for me to finish with bronze. We had worked hard the whole year to fight for the trophy here, but we did not manage to do so.”
Lasse Møller (DEN) – left back
On beating Montpellier for the third place:
“This victory was really important for us, not only to show the fans a different face than yesterday. It was hard to play for both teams. We wanted to have a positive end of this tournament. We want to win every match, this is our job. So we are happy that we did the job.”
Montpellier Handball
Érick Mathé (FRA) – head coach
On losing the third place match:
"Like Flensburg, we are disappointed when you play for the third place. We were so close to qualify for the final, but it is a great honour to be present at the EHF Finals. Both teams showed a good match.”
On the chances in the French league:
“We have the last two matches ahead, ideally, we win them both. We have the fate in our hands to finish third and it is still possible to play Champions League next season. Right now, we switch our focus on those two games.”
On the Diego Simonet’s end of career:
“He was injured yesterday, we want to have him in the position to play the last two matches in the league. Diego played many, many years in Montpellier, highlighted by the Champions League title in 2018, when he was MVP. It has always been a pleasure to train him. Diego always has a smile on his face, even when he is injured. We want give him a great farewell to the end of career next week.”
Rogerio Moraes (BRA) – line player
On the reasons for the defeat:
“Like in the semi-final, small things made the difference. We had many turnovers, we had some problems in attack. Flensburg have a strong defence with tall guys in the middle. When we got tired, it was hard to find solutions in attack. It was a very close game, it is hard to play such two tough matches in two days, as you cannot recover, especially when you lose a semi-final by one goal. Our fans came by bus from Montpellier, and I think they were happy with our performance today.”
Valentin Portes (FRA) – right back
On the match against Flensburg:
“Flensburg were not playing that good yesterday, I don’t know why. Today, they played much better. They had a better pace than us. We tried like yesterday, it was close, but we did not win."
On the upcoming matches in the French league:
“We have two more games at home, we need to win both to remain in the race for a Champions League spot. I hope, we managed to do so.”
photo © 2026 Anze Malovrh / kolektiff
