Alser BM Puerto Sagunto unable to overcome BM Aragón

Alser Puerto Sagunto lost to BM Aragón 33–22 in a match approached with high morale, but a poor start in defence proved decisive in allowing the hosts to win.

The opening minutes were very even. The red and whites were the first to open the scoring, before the Aragonese later levelled at two goals apiece. From the 10th minute onwards, however, the red and whites began to trail (5–3), as the hosts displayed a much more fluid attacking game that Alser's defence could not stop. The following minutes were characterised by the team coached by Vicent Nogués showing little defensive or attacking accuracy, partly thanks to an outstanding performance by the opposing goalkeeper, Kappelin. As a result, the red and whites went into half-time seven goals behind (17–10), unable to find a way back into the match.

After the restart, the Aragonese continued their good play, moving the ball better and showing greater ambition in their actions. In the 38th minute of the second half, Alser were nine goals down and had two extra players on court, which they failed to exploit. From the 20th minute onwards, the difference in performance was clear, as reflected by the score (28–18), and Alser were unable to play as easily as they had in their previous match. They had reduced the deficit to five goals thanks to good defensive positioning and great attacking accuracy on the counter-attacks. From that point, with BM Aragón holding a comfortable lead, Vicent Nogués gave goalkeeper Ibrahim Moral his first minutes in the Asobal League. Ultimately, the Valencian team lost 33–22 to a good side that controlled the match from start to finish.

Ultimately, this was a minor setback on Alser's road to securing survival. Alser Puerto Sagunto now face a genuine handball odyssey: their next match will be played on Saturday 29 at 20:00 against FC Barcelona, with Teledeporte's cameras at the Ovni; they will then visit León, before completing the handball Spanish trio of aces with Atlético de Madrid's visit to the Ovni. Three matches in which to continue growing before playing for the points and securing a good advantage ahead of the World Championship break.

Match Details

BM Aragón: Kappelin, Amadeo Sorli (2), Edgar Penon, Asier Antonio (1), Dujshebaev (5), Demetrio Lozano, Daniel Arguillas, Víctor Vigo (4), Sergio Ruiz, Álvaro Del Valle (3), Carlos Molina (8), Guillermo Ros, Antonio Cartón (6), Javier García (2), Cristian Postigo (1) and Javier Ari (1)

Alser Puerto Sagunto: Bruixola, Samuel and Ibrahim, Iker Serrano (6), Mateu Castellá (1), Ruiz (1), Pocholo (2), Tarrasó (2), Berrios (3), Chernov (1), Toni Alegre, Nebot, A. Fernández, Valles (4), Tello and Latorre (2).

Officials: Moyano and Meri. Suspensions for BM Aragón: Edgar Penon, Asier Antonio, Carlos Molina, Guillermo Ros and Javier García. For Alser Puerto Sagunto: Iker Serrano, Tarrasó and Nebot.

Score at five-minute intervals: 2–2, 5–3, 9–5, 10–7, 14–8, 17–10 Half-time 20–12, 22–13, 24–16, 27–17, 31–20, 33–22. Full time.

Pabellón Siglo XXI. 1,000 spectators

Translation produced using artificial intelligence.