Character is not enough and Austria eliminates Spain from the handball European Championship

The Spanish handball team, current continental runners-up, said goodbye to the European Championship in Germany, after being eliminated in the first phase by drawing 33-33 yesterday with Austria, in a clash in which the Hispanics' lesson in character they offered in the second half. A time in which Jordi Ribera's men had to play without their great star, full-back Alex Dujshebaev, who saw a direct red card with three minutes left before half-time for an action, in which the referees, after reviewing the video images, they estimated that he had hit Lukas Hutecek's face.

The European Championship already got off to a difficult start with the resounding defeat (29-39) that Spain suffered against Croatia on the first day. That setback forced the Hispanics to win all the games, which they could not do this Tuesday against Austria, despite the fact that they reached the last minutes in a position to win the victory.

In fact, Spain faced the last 45 seconds with an advantage (33-32) on the scoreboard after a penalty goal from Aleix Gómez, but Austria, which, unlike the Spanish team, was worth a draw, enjoyed a final position that Bozovic did not waste to score the final 33-33, which already made Imanol Garciandia's last final shot sterile.

Painful end to a tournament and a match in which the Spanish never found a way to show that solid image that had allowed them to reach the last four continental finals. Yesterday, when he was playing better in defense, with Alex Dujshebaev cutting all the passing lines from the advanced position and Viran Morros sweeping everything behind him, the expulsion came that changed everything. Without Dujshebaev he was not only left without his great star, but also without the man who was leading the defense with his speed of legs and hands. Circumstance that condemned Jordi Ribera's team to leave with a two-goal deficit (15-17) to the locker room, where the plot was forged that allowed Spain to react at the beginning of the second half. A start to the second period in which the Spanish team, thanks to the saves of Gonzalo Pérez de Vargas, and especially the goals of Ian Tarrefetal, made it 28-28, with just over nine minutes remaining until the end. to portend the worst. Spain did not take off and ended up giving up that tie at 33 that leaves them out of the European Championship.

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