The German handball players have thrown themselves into European Championship form with two impressive test match victories against runner-up world champions Croatia. Before the first group game, ex-national player and sports show expert Dominik Klein (42/187 games, 370 goals) assesses the chances of the DHB selection, but also warns about the start on Thursday in Herning, Denmark against Austria (8.30 p.m./live on Erste and at sportschau.de).
Sportschau.de: Germany has a difficult group with Spain and Serbia, and absolute top-class teams like Denmark, France and Norway are already threatening in the main round. Is there still a medal in it?
Small: “To be honest: I have every confidence in us. It was great to play these two games against Croatia as if they were already part of the European Championship. I was really impressed by the quality of our defense, our two goalkeepers are already in tournament form. And we can play different constellations, you can also give Johannes Golla or Julian Köster a break in defense without everything being in danger.”
Apart from defense, where do you see the biggest improvements compared to last year’s World Cup, when you lost to Portugal in the quarter-finals?
Small: “In addition to our flexibility, we now switch much better and faster, moving forward towards the end with few contacts. The second wave is also strong, overall the team seems much fresher to me than a year ago. Of course you still need development during a tournament like this – but from my point of view we can face this tough program with all the top opponents.”
Actually Denmark too, if it comes to that?
Small: “It’s clear that the Danes are the absolute favorites for the tournament. Especially when 16,000 people in Herning dress up the hall in red and white and have a party. But you can also make Denmark think.”
By what means?
Small: “Maybe turn off the hall lights… No, seriously: you have to give them tasks, you have to physically counter them, play fast-paced handball. And then you need a goalkeeper in world-class form that day.”
How big is the danger of taking Austria too lightly? At the World Cup, Germany found it difficult to get going in practically every game…
Small: “Of course we know each other from many games, and the boys from the Bundesliga will of course be particularly keen to show it to the Germans. It’s always a mental story against Austria. On paper, Germany are of course the clear favorites, but our players have to ignore that completely. This game is not a test for the next tasks, you have to be in full throttle mode straight away – that is, perform like you did against Croatia.”
Do you expect new developments in handball at the European Championships? Will there be tactical innovations?
Small: “You’ll certainly see the variant with four backcourt players and no pivots that emerged in the Bundesliga in Eisenach from time to time. Italy have already played that, but I’m also looking forward to the Faroe Islands, for example. With these teams you can often feel a different freshness and euphoria on the big stage, a total enthusiasm.”
You often hear from the players that a European Championship is harder than a World Cup – do you see it that way too?
Small: “Yes, absolutely. At a World Cup it can sometimes be that you have an exotic opponent against whom you can try out something in terms of personnel and tactics. Here at the European Championships, the game plan is absolutely tough.”
For Juri Knorr it is practically a home tournament, he plays for Champions League club Aalborg in the Danish league. How has he affected you since his move from the Rhein-Neckar Löwen?
Can still improve: Juri Knorr has a home game in Denmark
Small: “It will definitely help him at the European Championships that he’s been playing in Denmark for half a year now. He’s a self-critical guy, of course he also knows that he wasn’t in top-top form against Croatia. But he can now develop much more freely in the team, no one expects him to handle everything on his own anymore. Juri should just play relaxed.”
The DHB has announced that there is a bonus of up to 600,000 euros for EM gold – that’s a record; for the 2016 title there was 250,000 euros. Is money an additional motivation? Or do the players ignore it completely during the tournament?
Small: “It’s definitely a great appreciation for what the players achieve. But nobody thinks about these sums when they’re on the pitch, because they’re completely focused on their sporting success.”