Denmark suffered its first setback at the European Championships without Mathias Gidsel and Co. But the top favorite already has the possible semi-final duel with Germany in mind.
Nikolaj Jacobsen knew exactly what he was doing. The first defeat for the top favorites Denmark, just before the semi-finals – no reason at all for the coach to worry. “That’s the risk if you do without three key players,” explained the successful coach pragmatically. Because the handball power from the north is gathering all its strength for the possible European Championship duel with Germany.
And so Füchse star Mathias Gidsel, together with the other Danish top performers Simon Pytlick and Magnus Saugstrup, had to watch the 25:28 defeat against Slovenia in the Hamburg Arena from the stands.
“We always play to win, but that’s not the end of the world,” said Jacobsen after the final main round game on Tuesday evening. After all, the three-time world champion has “much more important things on his mind.”
Namely the hunt for the first European Championship gold in twelve years. And the trio around the Danish top scorer Gidsel should be ready for that. “I would have cried myself to sleep if one of the three players had been seriously injured today,” explained Jacobsen. The performance against the Slovenians in a game that, from a Danish perspective, was meaningless from a sporting point of view, showed that even the seemingly overwhelming title contender is vulnerable.
With players from the second row, Denmark struggled to find rhythm at the front and back. “If Pytlick and Gidsel are missing, who provide a lot of speed and goals, then you know it will be a different game,” explained backcourt player Henrik Möllgaard. Nevertheless, he was “disappointed with the performance. Our eyes were already on Cologne.”
Denmark in the European Championship semi-finals against the DHB team?
Denmark began its journey to the final city by train on Wednesday. In the evening (8:30 p.m. / ARD and Dyn) the potential semi-final opponent Germany will face Croatia for the last ticket to the round of the best four, for which France and defending champion Sweden have already qualified.
The German handball players know what to expect from Denmark. “That’s of course a really nice plan,” said Justus Fischer appreciatively: “But a few stories have already been written in Cologne, and I don’t see any reason why that shouldn’t also happen in the semi-final against Denmark.”
But then Jacobsen’s team will be back in full strength. The long-time coach of the Rhein-Neckar Löwen hopes that Gidsel, Flensburg’s Pytlick and pivot Saugstrup from SC Magdeburg are now “fresh and ready” to “give everything on Friday” after their break.
Either way, in the eyes of ex-Kiel player Niklas Landin, there is still room for improvement in the Danish team: “We can still improve.” Not good prospects for the coming opponents.