Vardar pointless after three Champions League rounds as Čupić takes the blame: Kuzmanovski's 15 goals in Gdańsk save Macedonian honour

Vardar without a point after three rounds, Čupić takes the blame

Vardar lost at home to Wisła Płock 26:32 and after three rounds of the Champions League sit bottom of their group without a single point. The Poles led 8:3 after 11 minutes, Vardar clawed back to two goals behind by half-time, but in the second half Wisła stretched it as far as 27:19. The only player in form was Mathieu Fadhuile, with 14 goals from 14 shots - more than half of all Vardar's goals. Coach Ivan Čupić did not look for an alibi in the referees: "My mistake was opening with an extra player and conceding a few easy goals into an empty net." He called the opponents "the only team that pays three or four players just to play defence". It is rare for a coach to stand in front of the public and say "it's my fault" - the question is whether the return game in Poland will bring a point too.

Gidsel scores 17 to equal a 17-year-old record

Mathias Gidsel scored 17 goals from 19 shots in Füchse Berlin's 40:32 win over Porto, equalling the Champions League record that Jesús "Chuchi" Martínez de la Cal had held for 17 years. His personal best in the competition had been 13 goals, scored twice last season. With these 17 the Dane is up to 36 goals and tops the scoring chart. Porto spent the whole game trying to stop him and had no answer - Berlin have now won six out of six against the Portuguese. When one player scores 17 of 40 goals, the tactics board becomes a side issue.

Kuzmanovski with 15 in Gdańsk, Pelister with a point and regrets

Filip Kuzmanovski played a game to remember in the EHF European League: 15 goals and 5 assists away at Wybrzeże in Gdańsk, a personal best on the European stage. Eurofarm Pelister, however, finished the game at 31:31 - the Bitola side were ahead, had an attack to win it at the death and wasted it, and the hosts equalised and got a last attack of their own, which also came to nothing. For the Pelister captain this is his second double-figure haul in Europe, after his 10 goals against PSG last season, and he is now on 313 European goals in the shirts of Pelister, Metalurg and Magdeburg. The EHF singled out his performance in a special video. Fifteen goals - and still only one point.

Balkan clubs in the Champions League: just statistics for the rich

The third round was a tough one for clubs from the region. Veszprém, six days after becoming club world champions, beat Partizan in Belgrade 37:26, with 24 saves from goalkeeper Emil Nielsen. Celje conceded 46 goals to PSG in Paris - the most the club has ever let in - and lost 46:35, with the French breaking two club records. Aalborg, led by goalkeeper Niklas Landin, beat Zagreb on their own court 33:23. The region once produced champions; now it serves as a backdrop for other people's records. How long will old glory work as a ticket into the elite?

Barça keep the streak going, Aarhus write history

European champions Barcelona made it 19 straight wins in the Champions League, beating Dinamo Bucharest 34:27 with 19 saves from goalkeeper Sergey Hernández. At the other end of the pecking order, Aarhus are celebrating the first win in the club's history in this competition - 36:32 over Montpellier, two-time European champions. Aalborg, Veszprém and Magdeburg remain unbeaten, while Nantes, after two narrow wins, fell 28:23 at Melsungen. And in Vardar's group, Nantes, Melsungen and Wisła now have four points each - the red-and-blacks are still waiting for their first.