DGermany's handball players rang in the European Championship festivities in Cologne with a narrow win against Iceland and raised hopes of a new winter fairy tale. At the start of the main round, the DHB selection beat the home country of national coach Alfred Gislasons in a hard-fought game 26:24 (11:10) and celebrated an important victory on the way to the semi-finals. In front of 19,750 spectators in the sold-out Cologne Arena, leading figure Juri Knorr was the best German thrower with six goals.
Previously, Olympic champions France beat Croatia 34:32 on Thursday and took the lead in Group I with 4:0 points. Like the record world champions, Austria remains undefeated. The Austrians, the DHB team's next opponents on Saturday, won against Hungary 30:29 and have over 3:1 points.
Anthem played incorrectly
The “special and emotional duel” for Gislason began with a breakdown. The Icelandic anthem played from the speakers, but it was distorted due to technical problems. On the second attempt it worked and Gislason also sang along. “I may be Icelandic, but I work with the German team and love this team,” the 64-year-old made clear before kick-off.
But his team initially struggled against Iceland's mobile backcourt players and trailed until the 13th minute. The DHB team also found no means in the initial phase against the robust former Kiel player Aron Palmarsson, who was difficult to defend in one-on-one situations.
Wolff's parades as life insurance
Germany needed the home, left-winger Rune Dahmke called on the crowd for even more support. The fact that the German team wasn't even more behind at this point was thanks to goalkeeper Andi Wolff, who kept his team in the game with strong saves. In the 14th minute, the DHB selection took the lead for the first time (6:5).
His front men were significantly less focused than Wolff, giving away four attacks in the middle of the first half. EM newcomer Martin Hanne in particular was far too impatient with his shots from the backcourt. “It's a very unpleasant game because the Icelanders play a very aggressive, attacking defense that prevents us from flowing. What's missing, of course, is our tempo game. We have to take even more risks when playing at high speed,” demanded DHB sports director Axel Kromer at the break.
Gislason despairs on the sidelines
But his speech had no effect. On the contrary, Germany continued as they left off after the restart – with strong reflexes from Wolff and weak throws at the opponent's goal. Gislason despaired on the sidelines. His face only brightened when right winger Timo Kastening made it 16:14 with some impressive spins.
But the German game remained too disjointed. With 14 minutes to go, Iceland equalized to 16:16 and took the lead again a short time later. Immediately beforehand, playmaker Knorr had missed a seven-meter penalty. The final phase finally became a wild handball thriller. Wolff saved a seven-meter shot shortly before the end when the score was 24:22. And he did the same a little later when the score was 24:23. Being outnumbered, the Germans ultimately saved the victory.
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