Handball: Germany is celebrating an ideal begin to the European Championship | EUROtoday

Stand: 10.01.2024 | Reading time: 3 minutes

Traumstart into the European Championship competition weeks: Supported by the world file crowd of 53,586 followers, Germany’s handball gamers celebrated the hoped-for opening victory on the house European Championship and took step one in the direction of the primary spherical. The DHB choice outclassed Switzerland in Düsseldorf with 27:14 (13:8) and fueled hopes of a profitable medal mission with a refreshing efficiency.

At the spectacular opening of the ultimate spherical, nationwide coach Alfred Gislason’s workforce impressed over lengthy stretches and in some instances already unfold the shine that they had hoped for. DHB sports activities director Axel Kromer was correspondingly relieved, for whom the success was the best reward for his forty seventh birthday. “It was a relief to me that the team acted so stably. That’s what we’ve been working towards,” Kromer mentioned.

The finest thrower for the winner was director Juri Knorr from cup winners Rhein-Neckar Löwen with six objectives. On Thursday, the German workforce travels to Berlin as leaders of Group A, the place the second preliminary spherical recreation towards outsiders North Macedonia is on Sunday and the cracker towards file world champions France subsequent Tuesday. The Olympic champion began the event with a simple 39:29 (17:13) win towards the North Macedonians. The first two groups attain the primary spherical.

Goosebumps environment on the world file recreation

“It will be overwhelming when we arrive here and the national anthem is played,” predicted captain Johannes Golla earlier than kick-off. And there was really a goosebumps environment within the soccer stadium of the second division workforce Fortuna Düsseldorf, which was specifically transformed right into a handball area for the beginning of the European Championship.

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The German workforce additionally contributed to this, as they shortly discovered their rhythm after a nervous begin and had been forward by 4 objectives for the primary time at 7:3 in the midst of the primary half. The nationwide coach had predicted the day earlier than: “The closer the kick-off gets, the greater the tension will be.”

There was little signal of this within the DHB choice, which was in a position to depend on an impressive Andreas Wolff between the posts proper from the beginning. The 32-year-old world-class goalkeeper was a bench participant and gave these in entrance of him the safety they wanted with quite a few saves. For this, the goalkeeper from the highest Polish membership Industria Kielce was repeatedly celebrated by the followers with chants and was given a standing ovation when he was substituted ten minutes earlier than the tip.

The protection is ideal

The protection additionally stood like a bulwark that the Swiss had been solely not often in a position to crack. As a consequence, the German workforce saved the Swiss at bay till the break, though not every part went as deliberate within the assault. A couple of technical errors and a lot of missed alternatives prevented the workforce from taking an excellent greater lead at half-time.

“It’s great when over 50,000 people shout Germany, Germany. That’s what the boys were hoping for,” Kromer praised the loud crowd throughout the break. This impressed the German workforce even after the change. After 47 minutes the lead elevated to 10 objectives for the primary time at 20:10. Long earlier than the ultimate whistle, the enthusiastic spectators had been singing “Oh, how beautiful that is”.

With their profitable efficiency, the DHB workforce created euphoria proper initially of the event, which is anticipated to final till the ultimate day on January twenty eighth. “This is an opportunity to make the sport even better known than it already is,” mentioned DHB boss Andreas Michelmann concerning the first European Championship in Germany and added: “We hope for even more resonance for the sport and want that carry a positive image to the population.” The first step in the direction of this has been taken.