Opinion
Why Germany can soon beat the Danes
Germany won silver at the European Handball Championships, once again losing out to the overpowering Danes. However, the chances that this will change soon are good.
A handball game lasts 60 minutes and in the end Denmark wins. This is currently the bitter reality in world handball. After the defeat in the main round (26:31), the DHB team also lost to the Scandinavians in the European Championship final (27:34). The Danes are now not only Olympic champions and world champions, but also European champions.
But: The clear end result was deceptive. Germany kept up for a long time and demanded a lot from the hosts. At halftime it was 16:18, and the Danes only pulled away in the last five minutes.
From a German perspective, this game and the entire tournament give hope for more. Despite a few setbacks and the so-called “group of death” in the main round, Germany fought through and took silver at the European Championships.
Wolff, Knorr and Co even beat the then European champions France 38:34. The DHB team could soon become dangerous for the Danes.
Gislason can achieve great things with this team
Even before the tournament, veteran goalkeeper Andreas Wolff had spoken of the best national team he had ever played for. National coach Alfred Gislason repeatedly emphasized the breadth of the squad, which gave him more options than in previous years.
The mix of old hands, young guns and players who are somewhere in between makes this team strong. The impression is that a tight-knit group is currently growing together at the DHB. The chemistry is right. With their performances at the European Handball Championships, the German team has shown that they are back at the top of the world.
Alfred Gislason now has the chance to form a team that can win the long-awaited next title after the 2016 European Championship. The DHB believes in Gislason and gave him a job guarantee before the all-important main round game against France. Gislason’s contract, who has been in office since the beginning of February 2020, runs until after the 2027 home World Cup.
Denmark’s world handball player ennobles the DHB team at the European Handball Championship
Germany’s handball players are on the right track before the home World Cup; the lead over the competition has become smaller. This has not gone unnoticed by the Danish world handball player Mathias Gidsel, who plays in the Bundesliga for Füchse Berlin.
“That scares me a bit. Now the German team is our biggest opponent,” said Gidsel after the European Championship final in front of a home crowd in the “Jyske Bank Boxen” arena in Herning. The Danish fans drowned out the German supporters and thus also had a share in the European championship title.
However, the home advantage is on the German side at next year’s World Cup. If the DHB selection makes it to the final twenty years after winning the World Cup in their own country, the Lanxess Arena in Cologne will be behind the team. Then the opponent – whether Denmark or anyone else – has good reason to be afraid of this German team.
