Fertiberia Puerto aim to start the league with a win against Barça Atlètic

Fertiberia Balonmano face Barcelona’s reserve side, Barça Atlètic, at the Ovni on Saturday 16 September. From 6.30 pm, the Internúcleos Pavilion will host a match to open the 2022–23 season, in which the red-and-whites will once again fight for promotion to ASOBAL. It promises to be quite a spectacle, and coach Toni Malla is asking nobody to miss it ‘I hope the Ovni will once again be a fortress on Saturday, as it was last season, that it will be packed and that together we will start the league on the right foot.’

‘I would rate this pre-season as good, if not excellent. We have improved the things we needed to improve. We tried to make the team more dangerous offensively and score more goals, and I think we are on the right track. We also wanted to improve the transition, score more transition goals, and I think we are achieving that too. In defence, because we have tried different systems, we have conceded more goals than usual, but once we fit the pieces into place, things will be like last year. Despite Nolasco and Gonzalo’s injuries, I think the team is in very good shape, thanks to great work by the fitness coach; in terms of commitment and work, I think they have done a spectacular job. I think the team has worked incredibly hard and I am very pleased with their attitude.’

Regarding the new signings, Toni Malla stated: ‘I think the new players have adapted very well. It is a shame about Gonzalo’s injury; what we were looking for was for them to become fully integrated into our system of play, and I think we have achieved that. Now we have to see how they perform in competition.’ 

They will face one of the most dangerous opponents in the group, featuring players with great potential. Regarding the Barcelona team, Malla commented: ‘This week we start the league against a very dangerous opponent. I don’t know whether it is good to start against Barça straight away. It is true that some players no longer play for them because they have moved elsewhere or been promoted to the first team, but they have an outstanding academy, they retain last year’s starting seven and it will be a very difficult match. We have to rely on our defence and, above all, be effective in attack, not lose our principles and create situations that all end with a shot.’ 

Villa de Aranda, first Copa del Rey opponent

Fertiberia learned this morning who they will face in the first round of the Copa del Rey. The draw paired the red-and-whites with Villa de Aranda, with the match taking place away from home on 8 October. Malla also wanted to share his thoughts on the home side they had been drawn against, saying: ‘Sportingly, I think they are one of the worst teams we could have drawn, especially because of the atmosphere they create, purely focused on handball, with many members. But in the end it will be another match, an enjoyable encounter, and as always we have a duty to compete and try to win it; if we do that, all the better, although it will be difficult. From here on, everything that happens should be positive: that we play well, that it is a good spectacle for the people who come to watch us, and above all that we enjoy it. If we go through, fantastic; and if we do not but compete, it is not the end of the world. We will try to do our very best on an excellent court, in a handball-mad environment and against a very strong team.’ 

Translation produced using artificial intelligence.