Gros: “We have played the best handball since I arrived”

Nine years have gone by since Ana Gros played in the EHF Champions League final, with Györi Audi ETO KC in that dramatic two-leg contest with Buducnost.

Her current team, Brest Bretagne Handball, might not have reached the 2020/21 final yet, but the French side is only one match away from doing so.

Brest’s debut at the DELO EHF FINAL4 on 29/30 May in Budapest also marks the first time Gros will be playing at the season-ending event.

“I just cannot explain in words what it means to me to finally play this EHF FINAL4. I have been chasing it for so long, not only with Brest but also with Metz before,” said Gros, who leads the competition’s top scorers lost with 118 goals. “It is incredible for me just to think about it.”

Gros, who turned 30 in January, has witnessed the rise of Brest in recent seasons. The Slovenian right back joined the club in the summer of 2018 after four seasons with Metz Handball.

While Metz did make it to the EHF FINAL4 in the following season, Brest have come close as well. Last year, they were in the quarter-final when the coronavirus outbreak forced the cancellation of the season.

“I thought we had the potential to reach the EHF FINAL4 last season already and the fact we were not able to, has given us some extra motivation. For sure, we had some ups and downs this season, but we played the best handball since I arrived here,” said Gros, who is nominated again for the right back position in the All-star Team, an honour she received in the 2017/18 season.

“It warms my heart to be among all those great players. It really is an honour, but I would not be there without my whole team.”

Brest are having another strong campaign, losing just two games along the way – both in the group phase against CSKA, which happen to be Gros’ new club next season.

But clubs like Buducnost and Metz, or even title holders Györ have not been able to beat Brest this season.

Has Gros already dreamed big in her last season with Brest?

“I spent some time with my family over Christmas, after the EHF EURO. Nobody was not talking about handball. But I remember, at some point, saying that we were going to win the Champions League,” she said with a laugh.

“It just popped up in a really funny way, I know how hard it is to actually achieve that, but I could feel that our team was very strong that we might finally be able to do it.”

The first hurdle for Gros and Brest at the EHF FINAL4 will be Györ in the semi-final. Brest and Györ had three draws in their last three meetings.

“This will be a fierce battle, and over the course of one game anything can happen. We have the potential to match up with Györ, but there are so many factors involved that it is hard to think about it already,” Gros said.

Gros has always been a prolific goal scorer. In her debut European season, she netted 51 times as a teenager for RK Olimpija in the Challenge Cup 2008/09. And in just three seasons Champions League with Metz, she found the net 231 times.

Her tally for Brest is 272, including this season’s 118 – and counting.

No wonder rival clubs have been eager to lure her away from the French side, and with CSKA, Gros will move to a club which also participates at the EHF FINAL4 this month.

It makes her journey to Budapest with Brest even more special.

“As days go on, I know that I am getting closer to the moment I have to say goodbye. It breaks my heart because I am so attached to France,” Gros said.

“But I try to see the positive side of things. I still have many things to go for with this team, trophies to win. I want to enjoy those last moments.”