Handball: The German team is gaining momentum for the European Championships

There you go: 34:33 against Portugal! Home win in Flensburg. The German national handball players are slowly getting going. It’s about time: The home European Championship is coming up, the opening game against Switzerland starts on Wednesday, and as is often the case before big tournaments, we don’t know exactly what the selection of the German Handball Federation (DHB ) says: She’s not one of the favorites, that’s for sure. But at least an insider tip? Where in this country you can deal with that Handball Bundesliga still believes that it has the strongest league in the world, at least in terms of balance? Doesn’t that have to rub off on the DHB national team?

Well, the penultimate test before the European Championships at least fueled hopes of a surprise coup. Despite the shock victory on Thursday in the Flensburg Campus Hall, national coach Alfred Gislason’s men had the game pretty well under control at times. The Germans knew how to shine on the offensive, especially in the first half: playmaker Juri Knorr from the Rhein-Neckar Löwen impressed with brilliant passes and precise shots, captain John Golla dug around the circle again and again and scored goals even from seemingly impossible throws. Meanwhile, Andreas Wolff kept the doors closed at the back: the veteran goalkeeper showed that he was after his goal disc prolapse apparently regained full possession of his powers in time.

The Germans quickly pulled away from the Portuguese: 4:1, 7:4, 12:6. Everything seemed fluid and easy, and that against an opponent that wasn’t too easy – the fans cheered and drummed. When 22-year-old debutant Martin Hanne whipped the 15:10 into the net with his first touch of the ball after being substituted on, there was exuberance among the 4,500 spectators: the score went into the break at 18:14. The Germans had previously internally declared the test match to be the actual “first European Championship game” in order to get into the competitive mood. You felt like you were on course.

But after the break, the problems in the German team became apparent. They are in the middle of the defense, where the Portuguese, who finished sixth at the European Championships in 2020, have been able to assert themselves better and better. “We completely lost track of things after half-time,” national coach Gislason later complained in a television interview. The middle block around Julian Köster (Gummersbach) and Johannes Golla, which was so solid in the first half, only functioned mediocrely; in the attacking game, hits on the post and missed throws crept in, and things no longer ran smoothly. The Portuguese steadily reduced the deficit.

In the 58th minute it was a draw again for the first time, 33:33, before 21-year-old Renars Uscins scored the redeeming 34:33. Because his goalkeeper colleague Andreas Wolff parried Portugal’s Joaquim Nazaré’s throw 20 seconds before the end, U21 world champion Uscins can claim the winning goal in the end. National coach Alfred Gislason saw the fact that the newcomers Martin Hanne (second best thrower with five goals) and Uscins performed so well as the most pleasing news, alongside the fact that a victory had been achieved in the competition simulation. “It’s great that the two young people come in and achieve this,” said the Islander happily. “That gives us more security across the board.”

Youngster Hanne was also happy with his debut. “Of course I’m very proud of it and will definitely sleep well,” said the backcourt player from TSV Hannover-Burgdorf about his fearless performance. He just implemented the trainer’s instructions: “Full pot. Don’t give a damn whether it’s successful or not. Alfred told me that before the game.”

This Saturday there is another test against the Portuguese, this time in front of the Kiel crowd. The entourage then heads towards North Rhine-Westphalia, where the emergency occurs on Wednesday: the European Championship opener against Switzerland in the Düsseldorf stadium in front of 53,000 spectators.