It was good news for German handball that manifested itself on Sunday evening in the Prenzlauer Berg district: Mathias Gidsel is only human. In the first 30 minutes of the top Bundesliga game between the Füchse Berlin and the German champions SC Magdeburg, one could almost assume that a handball robot was demonstrating its incredible possibilities on the playing field in the Max-Schmeling-Halle. And this “machine”, as Füchse sports director Stefan Kretschmar later described him, will most likely also compete against Germany at the World Cup in January. Not a great sporting performance, as the German team had already experienced in the 26:39 defeat in the Olympic final in Paris.
The Danish world handball player dominated the action in the midst of this collection of world-class players to such an extent that the Magdeburg defense seemed helpless at times against the offensive power of the left-hander. Gidsel, 25, scored goals with hard throws from the backcourt, completed fast counterattacks with surgical precision, surprised the opposing defense with lightning-fast throws and once even scored with his back to the goal. In one-on-one duels, Magdeburg’s coach Bennet Wiegert noted that he was hard to hold down anyway. The backcourt player scored ten goals in ten attempts in the first half, and Berlin had already clearly moved ahead to 23:17.
:Skinny, but damn good
Mathias Gidsel is about to replace Mikkel Hansen as the Danes’ defining player. His coach is enthusiastic, but would rather curb the euphoria.
The good news for German handball? In the second half, the Magdeburg defense found a way to largely stop Gidsel’s second part of the performance. With a view to the World Cup, there is hope that we can effectively counter the Danes, who have recently been overpowering. In any case, Magdeburg managed to save the score at 31:31, with the Saxony-Anhalts even having the opportunity to win with their last attack. Wiegert saw a “super intense game from the first minute”, he could also have described it as an advertisement for handball: 9,000 enthusiastic spectators from both camps, two rivals on equal terms, handball art at the highest level.
The fact that Füchse managing director Bob Hanning then raged against the referees and protested because of a missed, in his opinion, regular goal by Füchse player Lasse Andersson was just a small blemish. In any case, coach Jaron Siewert gave this protest little chance of success, especially since he “can’t imagine when the game will be rescheduled.” The schedule is far too tight.
The game between the German Champions League participants is just a duel in the Bundesliga
Despite all the class and intensity, the game between the two Champions League representatives was only a duel for pursuit, as Berlin is third in the table by two points and Magdeburg is sixth with one point and one game less. The champions are in a difficult situation; Wiegert has to constantly improvise due to an injury. In addition to Felix Claar and national player Tim Hornke, Iceland’s Omar Ingi Magnusson was missing his most important goalscorer in Berlin. Philipp Weber sat on the bench, but remained out injured. The Foxes are hardly doing any better in December of this incredibly intense handball year: Jerry Tollbring’s season is over (torn cruciate ligament), Paul Drux’s career is even over due to cartilage damage, and Tobias Reichmann was missing on Sunday due to an injury. Coach Siewert described his plight by having to send a few ailing players onto the field.
And the competition is getting better: At the top of the table there are two teams with the same points in MT Melsungen and TSV Hannover-Burgdorf (both 22:4 points), in front of the SCM in Flensburg and Kiel are two traditional clubs that have a claim to the title in their club -carry DNA. And behind the champions lurk the resurgent Gummersbacher and the Rhein-Neckar Löwen, all opponents with similar capabilities. The fact that the Bundesliga is “by far” the best league in the world, as Paul Drux explains, is also reflected in the fact that “all the teams are so strong that you always have to be fully there if you want to win”.
In addition to the European Cup games, the top teams are also burdened by the absence of national players who play at least one major tournament every year. In a year with the Summer Olympics like 2024, the professionals are over the limit, injuries are the result – good to see on Sunday in the Max Schmeling Hall.
And the handball players in the Bundesliga themselves? Don’t want to complain
It’s a well-known problem for which Füchse sports director Stefan Kretzschmar doesn’t have a solution: “It’s brutal, especially for teams like us or Magdeburg, who also play in the Champions League. It’s worth honoring what the top players are doing, it’s not something that can be taken for granted.” The former national player has known about these problems “for ten years”, and he sees the only short-term solution as “expanding the squad”. Kretzschmar doesn’t even want to think about the World Cup in January; he can “only hope that everyone comes back healthy.”
And the players themselves? Don’t want to complain. When asked whether he lost his strength in the second half, Mathias Gidsel dismissed it: “Oh, it’s always easy to say it was because of the strength. I didn’t have the feeling.” After the break, Gidsel only managed one more goal. “I think they discussed that at halftime,” said Gidsel, “they doubled me more, and we didn’t manage to find better solutions.” This was mainly due to Magdeburg’s pivot Magnus Saugstrup, who also played well , scored five goals and Gidsel stopped effectively. By the way, Saugstrup is a friend of Gidsel’s, is considered one of the best defenders in the world – and of course plays in the Danish national team. This is not good news for German handball.
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