Portugal plays big at the World Cup handball and also wants to throw out Germany. The team is carried by a young star with a tragic story.
Nils Kögler reports from Oslo
For their duel on Wednesday evening, the national players in Germany and Portugal could also play warm on the shuffleboard in the hotel lobby. Because both teams are in the same hotel.
In the Scandic Fornebu just outside of Oslo and just a few hundred meters from the Unity Arena, in which the quarter-final duel is held, there are therefore unusual scenes: When national player Timo Kastening speaks to the press about the quarter-finals in the hotel lobby, for example. he can watch his opponent only a few meters away at lunch.
There is at least a lot to study for the Germans with their opponent, because the former outsider Portugal plays great at the World Cup. If it was still 19th for the European Championship 2022 (from 24 teams), Portugal mixed up only three years later. The Iberer already switched off top nations such as Norway, Sweden and Spain.
It was only a little more than a year ago that the DHB selection against Portugal played its last two test games in front of the European home championship. At that time there were two victories against the southern Europeans with a 34:33 and a 35:31. However, the Germans do not want to rest on the success of back then. “Unfortunately, this is no longer possible. These are completely new games again,” said Köster.
Portugal is a very young team, has developed significantly again since then and took the next step. “Sure, we can take a look at these games again, which will certainly help us a bit when it comes to tactics, but the quality has gone up again with the Portuguese,” says Köster.
One of the young players who show special achievements in this tournament is Francisco Costa. The only 19-year-old has already scored 36 goals in this tournament and had a significant part in the fact that the Portuguese are among the greatest surprises of the tournament. The back area player is celebrated as a teenager sensation even on the website of the World Handball Association IHF.
At a young age, Costa already has an eventful story that he immortalized with an “AQ” tattoo on his forearm. The “AQ” stands for Alfredo Quintana. Quintana is a former national goalkeeper Portugal. But when Portugal had just qualified for a World Cup for the first time in 18 years and took tenth place at the tournament, Quintana died of a heart attack just a few days later at the age of 32.
The then 16-year-old Costa was not just a good friend of Quintana. The goalkeeper was considered a kind of mentor. A common photo is still the profile picture on Costas Instagram account. “One day you will be a champion,” Quintana predicted him, Costa once reported.
The prophecy would like to redeem Costa at this tournament. In any case, the Germans are warned of him – but not only in front of him. Because as if a Costa wasn’t enough, there is also his brother.
Martim Costa is three years older than Francisco and has already scored 33 goals in this tournament. The two not only play together in the national team, but also in the club at Sporting Lisbon. By the way, they are trained there by their father Ricardo. In three, the Costas also mix up international handball there, beat Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League Top Club, Veszprém (Hungary) struck a draw and only had to give up against the Foxes Berlin with one goal.