Will the Rouen Dragons succeed? Victorious 3 goals to 0 in the first leg of the round of 16 of the Champions League last week, the Rouen hockey players face, this Wednesday evening, in Austria Red Bull Salzburg players for the return leg.
“We’re going to have to play a normal game, not say to ourselves that we have a three-goal lead, says Enzo Cantagallo, defender of the dragons. We will have to go there with the knife between our teeth and try to win this match. It would really be a mistake to start thinking that we have three goals in advance, we must preserve the score etc. This is not at all what to do. It’s a game, there is 0-0 at the start of the game and you have to win that game to move on to the next round. ”
A game behind closed doors
In case of a draw or victory, the dragons are insured a historic qualification in the quarter-finals. “The players know that no French team has managed to qualify for the quarter-finals of the Champions League, explains Fabrice Lhenry, trainer of the Rouen dragons. It would be good for French hockey because we are not really respected in Europe and I think that maybe the teams saw the first result and were surprised. But now, we will have to confirm this good performance. ”
This time around, the Rouen dragons will not play at home but in a completely empty Austrian ice rink. Due to the health situation in Austria, the meeting will take place behind closed doors.