SC DHfK Leipzig stops downward trend with victory against Frisch Auf Göppingen

The handball players of SC DHfK Leipzig have halted their downward trend in the Bundesliga. After three consecutive defeats, the team of coach Runar Sigtryggsson defeated Frisch Auf Göppingen 27:25 (15:14) in front of their home crowd on Sunday afternoon. In front of 4519 spectators, national player Luca Witzke was the best scorer for SC DHfK, which is now tenth in the table with 10:10 points.

William Bogojevic, introduced as a new signing just a few hours before the start of the game, was still without a goal on his debut in a Leipzig shirt. The 27-year-old Swede, who most recently played for Hungarian Champions League participant Pick Szeged and signed a contract in Leipzig until 2026, is set to replace Matej Klima at left-back, who is out until the end of the season due to a serious knee injury.

Four days after the bitter cup defeat in Eisenach (24:30), Leipzig's desire to make amends was clear from the outset. With high intensity in defense and quick transition play, they initially took control and led 6:3 after eight minutes. However, when Göppingen switched to offensive cover, SC DHfK's flow of play slowed noticeably. The visitors equalized with three goals in succession to make it 11:11 in the 22nd minute. Sigtryggsson substituted Bogojevic for the first time in the 24th minute with the score at 12:12, who immediately took on responsibility, but had no luck in finishing.

The club from Leipzig also got off to the better start in the second half and pulled 21:17 ahead (41'). However, they were then repeatedly thwarted by Göppingen's strong goalkeeper Julian Buchele (16 saves in total). As a result, the visitors remained in contention and tied the scores at 23:23 in the 52nd minute. However, Leipzig had more to add in the final spell. The 20-year-old Friedrich Schmitt put SC DHfK 26:24 ahead with a direct free throw with 82 seconds remaining. Although Marcel Schiller reduced the deficit again for Göppingen with a seven-meter penalty, the home side played out its final attack cleverly and so secured its fifth home win of the season.