Granollers secured a comfortable victory over Buzău, winning 37:31 in the EHF Cup on Tuesday evening. The hosts, sitting fourth in the table with one draw and no points so far, put the game to bed early and took a commanding lead into the final period. Buzău, meanwhile, had just been reduced to ten after a tricky start and were looking for a way back in. The result sees the Spanish side move off the bottom of their group standings.
Granollers were efficient from the opening whistle. They won a dangerous free-kick in the opening minutes and converted it neatly, putting pressure on the Romanian side from the outset. Buzău struggled to find their rhythm, losing their man repeatedly in midfield. To be fair, the visitors had a decent run of form before this — a draw with Aguas-Santush and a narrow loss to Vaslui — but this was a different story. By then, the gap was already too wide.
The hosts extended their advantage in the second period. A quick counter-attack found space down the left, and the academy graduate marked his first start with a goal. Buzău dug in but couldn't stop the wave of attacks. They rescued a point in their last outing but couldn't repeat that here. Granollers stretched the back line with pace and precision, leaving little room for error. The visitors were outclassed in transition.
Statistics don't tell the full story, but they confirm the dominance. Granollers recorded 18 shots on goal compared to Buzău's 11, with a conversion rate that put the game beyond doubt. Expected goals figures showed 4.2 for the hosts versus 2.1 for the visitors — many shots with one goal means chances went begging. The final scoreline reflected a one-sided afternoon.
The result matters more than the numbers. Granollers had lost 31:40 to Flensburg-Handewitt just days ago and needed to respond. They did, and they did it emphatically. Buzău, with one loss and one point in their first competitive outing, now face a tough road ahead. The gap between them and the leaders is already significant — 22 points separate the top two teams after just one round of fixtures.
