Galatasaray, Cantu and Meaux are the opposition
RSV got into an especially difficult preliminary round at Champions Cup early in May. The opponents at the tournament in the capital of Spain will be title-defendants Galatasaray Istanbul, Italian top-team Uniphol Briantea ’84 Cantu as well as threefold Champions Cup winners CS Meaux from France.
So not only does the group consist of the two teams, RSV and Galatasaray, that have shared the wins for six years in a row, but also the two other clubs that are on spot number one in both other groups of EuroLeague 1.
“This is definitely a tough group, but it just means for us that we have to play at a top level right from the start. If you want to win in the end you’ll have to beat all of them anyway.” says RSV-coach Nocolai Zeltinger with just a hint of humorous fatalism. The second preliminary round of Madrid consists of hosting team CD Fundosa ONCE, RSC-Rollis Zwickau who lost against CS Meaux in EuroLeague 1, Santa Lucia Sport Rom and Hyeres.
As well as top team Galatasaray, who have great international players and who have been dominating the European scene since 2008, only interrupted twice by RSV in 2010 and 2012, Cantu are a dangerous opposition. The northern Italian team with German National Player Andre Bieneck have left the preliminary rounds unbeaten; they even won against Italy’s figureheads Santa Lucia Rome. Bieneck’s team mates are amongst others Britons Ian Sagar and Martin Edwards, US-American Brian Bell, Senegalese Elhadji Diouf, Spaniard Jordi Ruiz Jordan as well as Swede Joakim Lindblom.
Champions League Final Round 2014 in Madrid:
Group A: CD Fundosa ONCE Madrid, Hyéres Handi Basket, RSC-Rollis Zwickau, SSD Santa Lucia Sport Rom.
Group B: Galatasaray Istanbul, RSV Lahn-Dill, CS Meaux, Uniphol Briantea ´84 Cantu.