Elohim Prandi has seen others. He survived a savage knife attack in the streets of Paris in the early morning of January 1, 2022. It was not a dislocation of the left shoulder contracted during the France-Sweden match on November 6 (37-31) which can put a “Bison” (his nickname) down. The injury is nevertheless very annoying.
First for him, the right-hander, who must remain on forced rest, but also for PSG and for the French team. For the latter, coach Guillaume Gille is keeping him in reserve for the World Cup (January 14-February 2), since Prandi is part of the extended list of 35 players published on Friday. Gille can draw from it to establish his final selection of 16 players. Any hope of seeing him return in time for the World Championship is therefore not completely lost.
Elohim Prandi absent for several months.
Forced to come out with an injury during the French team’s last match against Sweden on Wednesday November 6, Elohim Prandi carried out additional examinations which revealed a dislocation of the left shoulder.
— PSG Handball (@psghand) November 7, 2024
The absence of Elohim Prandi is “estimated at several months”, PSG communicated 10 days ago without further details. The Parisian has not had an operation and the only certainty is that he will not return to the field before the end of the year. With PSG, he will miss at least 10 matches between the Starligue (6), the Champions League (3) and the Coupe de France. He will notably miss the trip to Nantes on December 15, essential in the fight for the title. No doubt he will return after the international break, starting February 14.
He alone scores nearly 20% of Parisian goals
In the standings to date, PSG is still leader and undefeated, even if it saw its rival Nantes, winner Friday evening in Ivry (34-22), return to its height before its trip to Aix on Sunday (5 p.m.). The absence of the former Nîmes, however, weakens the building. Elohim Prandi has so far scored 59 goals in the league (in 9 matches) and 43 in the Champions League over 6 matches.
The club’s top scorer behind Pole Kamil Syprzak (67 in the league, 53 in the Champions League), Prandi alone scores almost 20% of Parisian goals. The statistic rises to 39% if we associate it with the Polish pivot. His absence leaves a big void that no one seems able to completely fill.
“The success of PSG is based on a trident of exceptional players: Luc Steins, Kamil Syprzak and Elohim Prandi,” says a Starligue expert. Take a single spike away from this weapon and it performs a lot less well. She is less dangerous and the team is less scary. I understand that PSG is looking for a medical joker to replace him, but who? The best are already under contract. Without Prandi, Paris still has the means to get out of this without too much damage but it will have to tighten its buttocks. Its room for maneuver is limited, even against the more modest teams in the championship. »
To fill the void, coach Raul Gonzalez must juggle. It doesn’t have 36,000 solutions. His left is young with Noa Narcisse (20 years old) and Wallem Peleka (22 years old), left backs by training. Or it doesn’t make much spark. At the club since 2023, the Dane Jacob Holm, the other left-back in store, is struggling to highlight himself. It’s time to show off.
