He is someone who always gives everything. There are no half measures for Viran Morros. No abbreviated preparation, no half-hearted effort. It is all the more difficult for the Spanish defense specialist to have to follow a game off the field, like the foxes’ draw in Balingen recently. “It’s a terrible feeling because I can’t do anything. Then I get really nervous,” says the 38-year-old, who had to watch TV at home due to a respiratory illness. It is questionable whether he will get playing times in the last match of the season against SG Flensburg-Handewitt (Sunday, 3.30 p.m. / Sky) – which would also be his last game for the Berliners. In a game in which the third in the table is no longer about anything in terms of sport, neither the club nor Morros themselves want to risk anything.

But the handball player from Barcelona showed at the beginning of the season that he can also be a great support for the team off the field. Coming in after the Olympics with a hamstring injury, he was constantly with the team during rehab. The veteran found his way into the existing structure without any problems and inspired everyone with his work ethic and his always positive attitude. “Everyone could learn something there,” says sporting director Stefan Kretzschmar, who after a good six weeks was also able to enjoy the Spaniard’s playing qualities.

And there Morros was quick to show why he had won the Spanish league almost a dozen times before racking up title after title in the French league. Quite apart from the international successes that recently culminated in the Olympic bronze medal. Because when Morros, who is almost two meters tall, is in the defensive block, it becomes difficult for any player to find a gap. Not only because Morros is extremely physically present, but because he moves cleverly and quickly.

Because he skilfully condenses the spaces with his long arms and takes the anticipatory step. And one or the other player has sometimes dropped the ball out of sheer respect when he stood in front of the Spanish legend. “I’m not overly aggressive. But if one of my teammates takes a hit up front, it can be the case that it’s compensated for at the back,” says Morros with a grin. He is a team player through and through and also has a winning mentality that enriches every squad with that certain something.

His qualities are one reason the Foxes would end the season on 55 points with a win on Sunday, their best result since 2011. “I even think we could have been a little better if we hadn’t been missing important players for certain games,” says Morros. “But that’s the sport. And this league is damn tough. But that’s what makes it fun. It was even better than I expected.”

He would have loved to have stayed longer in Berlin, but the club made a different decision. With the foxes one could have imagined keeping him as part of a coaching position, but Morros is not at that point yet. “I’ve been thinking about retiring for three years, but I’m not done yet,” says the two-time European champion, who will switch to the Swiss runner-up next season. There was an offer from France and also from the Bundesliga – including a financially lucrative offer from Melsungen – but Morros decided on the up-and-coming Scout Winterthur club.

“It just clicked,” he says with anticipation of the new task. The environment is crucial for him, although he knows that after years of only living in major cities, moving to a city of 115,000 will take some getting used to. “That will be interesting. But the distances are not that far in Switzerland,” says Morros, who will then need about as long to drive to Zurich as it does to get from his apartment to the training center in Berlin.

But that’s still a dream of the future. Before that, he would like to breathe in the atmosphere in the Max-Schmeling-Halle one last time and celebrate the last day of the game with the Foxes fans and his teammates. Then he is once again fully Berliner.