Handball Euro: USA vs. Spain - Final Score 22:24

There’s no deep philosophy here. They just played like absolute garbage—a little bit of Ballac this, but mostly it's all on Goluža.

He’s keeping Lackovica and Strlek on the bench while we can't even manage to score a goal for ten minutes straight.

And his excuse? "Lackovic can't handle the diagonal transitions between defense and attack," as if that makes any sense. What an idiot.

Forcing the ball to Ballac when he clearly isn't having it is just adding more stupidity to the mix. Fine, Ballac is in the lineup, but why isn't Duvnjak playing right next to him? We've used both of them together before, and at least then the ball doesn't just fly out of bounds every five seconds...

Actually, who cares... I might as well spend my evening getting worked up over Slavko Goluza. He's completely incompetent.

Well, that’s it, we just take on the Frenchmen and call it a day...

Honestly, I feel like no medal is truly complete unless you had to fight through a Frenchman to get it. ☕

frozentiger6 said:And what’s the excuse? "Lackovic can't switch diagonally from defense to offense, he's just too slow," what an idiot.

That's easy to say, though... what I really want to know is why, when they're facing their most critical offensive play at -1 minute left on the clock, Kopljar just throws it out of bounds. He didn't exactly need to be switching diagonals then. ☕

frozentiger6 said:It’s not rocket science. A few bad calls from the refs, a bit too much reliance on Ballac, and most of all, too much Goluža.

He keeps Lackovica and Strlek on the bench while we can't even find the back of the net for ten minutes straight.

And his excuse? "Lackovic can't switch between defense and offense fast enough," what an idiot.

Forcing the play through Ballac when he's having an off night is just pure stupidity. Fine, Ballac is playing, but why isn't Duvnjak right there next to him? We've used both on the field before; at least then the ball wouldn't keep flying out of bounds...

But honestly, who cares... I might as well waste my energy getting worked up over Slavko Goluza. He's completely incompetent.

Ballac will be gone soon enough, but unfortunately, Goluža looks like he'll be sticking around for at least another decade, regardless of how we perform.

Does anyone happen to know if tickets are still available for the Tuesday and Wednesday shows at the Madison Square Garden arena... or is everything already sold out?

With Olesen and Pedersen heading out, we’re basically in the clear... nothing to worry about now.😬

Thank god I went with Creedence Clearwater 🙂 instead of watching that game—it definitely saved me from a massive headache 😁

Maybe there'll be another concert lined up at the same time as the next game 😬

Our athletes just never seem to grasp that a game isn't over until the final whistle blows. That’s exactly why we end up throwing away leads like this. We really should have walked away with a 6 or 7-point win yesterday.

Well, Spain—I honestly can't remember the last time I saw them playing with a defense this organized, let alone being this disciplined. Usually, they just rely on flashes of brilliance or outplaying you with pure skill. But today? Everyone was actually following orders, sticking to the formation like it was drawn on a chalkboard. Pretty wild.

Our lack of ideas in the offensive zone really started eating at us. In the first half, we managed to scrape by thanks to that big scoring run and some solid fast breaks, so we ended up heading into the break up by 3—which, looking back, was probably more luck than anything else. But in the second half? Nothing worked. They just sat there in a tight zone for 30 minutes; we couldn't crack it. We only managed 8 goals while giving up two more than we did in the first half.

People can go ahead and blame Balić or the refs if they want. Sure, they caught us on a few things toward the end—there were mistakes, and I personally hate those stopped attacks on goal and the disallowed points—but man, let's be real, we just didn't play well enough.

If we had just put together one decent run, or if we hadn't let Tomaz sink three in a row right when they gained momentum—mostly because of one bad turnover, I guess—we probably would have been fine.

Man... just damn.

Sean Martin62 said:Does anyone know if tickets are still available at the arena in Chicago for Tuesday and Wednesday... or is everything sold out?

Based on my limited understanding of the situation—having received a field report about 45 minutes ago—there are tickets available for tomorrow priced at $25. The box office at the arena is located right at the entrance and opens at 10:00 AM (though I am unsure how late they stay open; officially, the box office closes at 6:00 PM).
I wasn't actually asking, but there will likely be tickets left for the third round as well.

As for the finals, I have no idea if they have any stock left (I checked online earlier this morning, and it did indicate availability and remaining counts).

What a total clown. 🤦

Honestly, I can't shake the feeling that we basically let the Americans walk all over us last night. That's just my take, anyway.

urbanhawk17 said:What an absolute clown! 🤦

Keta 🙏 🙏 🙏

rustywalker1 said:Honestly, our athletes just never seem to grasp that a game isn't over until the final whistle blows. That's exactly why we end up throwing away leads like this. We really should have walked away with a 6 or 7 point win yesterday.

Look, there’s no denying the refs totally screwed us, but let's be real—Slavko Goluza kept Lac and Štrukla glued to the bench even though Vuković wasn't even remotely dialed in, maybe at 5% capacity if you're being generous. And don't even get me started on Duvnjak being out of commission; it felt like he was mentally checked out, probably halfway through a party somewhere, half-buzzed or whatever. Then you've got Lončar-KOpljar, who, my god, after twenty national team appearances, everyone is just sitting there waiting for him to actually show up...🙂 defensive striker
To sum it up, Lac is getting all the heat just because he had the nerve to suggest that, heaven forbid, we might actually lose to a team like Spain. Like, excuse me, Lac, how can we lose without leaving some blood on the court?
Hey Lac, quick question for you: remember that first half where Poland was down 9-20 against Sweden, and then they fought back to a 29-29 tie in the Polish region? Maybe do a little homework on that game and tell me how much motivation those Polish players actually had to play for their national team.
And seriously, how many goals did Kiril Lazarov score compared to all our perimeter shooters combined?
Baby Balić, here's a question for you: did Lionel Messi ever cry to the ref when Pep crushed him, or did he just focus on passing the ball to go up 2-1?

Anthony Wilson4 said:Ballac had a few bad calls, so what? Even Michael Jordan messed up, and so did Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. Making mistakes is just being human. I’d pin this loss more on the coach than the players; he made some tactical errors, but let's not start hanging him from the rafters just yet...
When Cervar was in charge, everyone was tearing him apart, and now they're doing the exact same thing to Keti. He needs more time. If you look at the progress compared to last year, the improvement in play is already there, even if the results haven't caught up yet.

The coach has his work cut out for him trying to manage a personality like Ballac's. Sure, the guy is a genius, but he simply can't play all 60 minutes in today's game. At the end of the day, it looks like the coach hasn't quite risen to the occasion. You have to prove yourself coaching a club team first before you step up to lead the national team—and where exactly did Keta prove himself? It'll take four years just to learn the ropes. Not utilizing your best players in the final ten minutes is bizarre. We all know Kopljar still isn't a reliable substitute for the right wing. And the coach isn't getting the most out of Duvnjak either.
One thing is certain: we have to accept that we have a team currently finding its rhythm and a coach who is still learning on the job. Either that, or we should have done what the Canadians did: completely overhaul the roster, sit out two major tournaments, and come back stronger later.

I completely lost track of 🙂

We learn from our mistakes 🙂

It was one of the last major tournaments for this specific group of players, yet he’s still acting like he’s learning lessons. Honestly, just go head down to a local high school gym and stay there if you want to keep playing like an idiot.

Douglas Wells52 said:Based on what I heard from someone who was actually there about 45 minutes ago, tickets are still available for tomorrow. They’re going for $25 each. The WPA ticket booth is right by the arena entrance and opens at 10 AM. I’m not entirely sure how late they’ll stay open this afternoon, though the official schedule says they’re there until 6 PM.
I didn't specifically ask, but there will likely be tickets for the third round too...

As for the finals, I haven't heard if they have any left. There were some available earlier this morning, and at least the website was showing stock levels...

I suspect tickets might be harder to find for the game against the Americans. There should still be some cheaper options around $15 available...