The German handball players start the game against the Scandinavians strong, but then the situation becomes clearer and clearer. Now the team of national coach Alfred Gislason has to tremble.
Now things are getting very tight for the German national handball team at the EM 2022. After the 23:29 defeat at the start of the main round against Spain, the DHB team also suffered a significant defeat against Norway. Due to the 23:28 (12:14), the team of national coach Alfred Gislason now has to tremble for progress – the game against the direct competitor Sweden on Sunday is now a final.
The inexperienced German team was quite clearly inferior to the European Championship third party, as against Spain the day before, despite a strong fighting performance. An offensive that was too weak cost the DHB team, which was hit by eleven corona-related failures, the chance of a surprise.
The DHB team now needs support
Even the goalkeeper Johannes Bitter, who was outstanding in the first half, could not prevent the deserved defeat. The heavyweights of the handball world are currently just one size too big for the completely newly formed DHB team.
The best thrower for the selection of the German Handball Federation (DHB) was captain Johannes Golla on Friday with four goals. In order to reach the semi-finals, the German team urgently needs two wins – and is dependent on support. If the German team also loses the next game against runners-up Sweden on Sunday (6 p.m. / ARD), the dream of a medal will be over prematurely.
At the end of the main round on Tuesday (6 p.m. / ZDF) against Russia. The top two teams in the group of six advance to the semi-finals.
Bitter as a strong support
Against Norway, Gislason was able to field the same side twice in a row for the first time in the tournament. As on the previous day, there were no new corona cases to complain about. The “gratifying picture”, as DHB sports director Axel Kromer called it, was only marred by the increased values at Julius Kühn. The comeback of the top scorer, who was the first DHB player to test positive during the European Championship, burst because the PCR test “did not meet the requirements for a return to the tournament”.
The German cover with a strong Bitter backing only allowed two goals to be conceded in the first eight minutes. Up front, the circle game in front of 2026 spectators in the Ondreja Nepelu Arena in Bratislava initially worked very well, captain Johannes Golla scored twice. Germany also presented themselves very effectively in the counterattack.
“We make too many mistakes”
The Norwegians had to fight hard for every goal they scored. The Kiel star player Sander Sagosen was well worked by Simon Ernst in the German defense, and Bitter saved one ball after the other. The problem: On the offensive, the backcourt rarely found gaps.
When David Schmidt ended a nine-minute dry spell without a German goal, a 6:5 lead (17th) had long since turned into a deficit. “The defense is great, we make too many mistakes up front,” Gislason yelled during a time-out. The Icelander was visibly frustrated that his team didn’t reward themselves for their strong defense.
After all: The Norwegians, who shot Poland 42:31 out of the hall the day before, only rarely got into their feared game of speed. Nevertheless, the DHB men quickly ran after a four-goal deficit after a messed-up restart.