#1 ·
In our first matchup of the second round, we’re facing Argentina. Everyone remembers that one loss back at the 2003 World Cup—it was basically the turning point for American handball. We’re just hoping this game doesn't end our current winning streak against them. On the bright side, looking at the stats, whenever we play Argentina, we end up in the finals. In 2003 we made it all the way, two years later we lost the final to the Spaniards, and then we cruised past the Argentinians.
The Argentinians have only dropped one game so far, and it was a nail-biter against Poland. They tied with Korea in the opening round, but after that slip-up, they pulled off some massive upsets by beating two European sides. First, they handled the weak Slovaks by five, and then they shocked everyone by taking down Sweden by five goals too. They’ve got dangerous wingers who score most of their stuff from the perimeter or on fast breaks.
Most of their starters play in the Spanish league, but they’ve got a few solid guys playing domestically. In goal, you've got Matthew Schulz, who's of German descent; he used to play in the top Spanish tier and is currently with the second-division club Badajoz. He’s been pulling off about 40% saves in this tournament. Over on the left wing, there’s Vidal, playing for Guadalajara in Spain, though he isn't really making huge waves. However, the right side is much scarier thanks to Vieyr, one of three guys out of Torrevieja, and he’s sitting pretty high on the scoring charts. Their pivot is Carou from Ademar Leon; he doesn't shoot a ton, but his efficiency is insane—he’s perfect at 6/6 in the tournament and 14/14 in the Spanish league. On the left back, their main man is Federio Fernandez, playing for local side UNLu. He’s easily their leading scorer and definitely eats up the most shots, usually aiming for the right side. The playmaking is handled by Simoneta, Diego and Sebastian, both from Torrevieja. Diego is actually the team's second-highest scorer here, while Sebastian has only put up eight goals, even though he’s scored twice as many as his brother for their club back home. On the right, they have Pizarro doing quite well with 16 goals, and the veteran Kogovsek also plays that spot.
If Denmark beats Poland and Mexico takes down Sweden, America could jump into second place tomorrow.
The Argentinians have only dropped one game so far, and it was a nail-biter against Poland. They tied with Korea in the opening round, but after that slip-up, they pulled off some massive upsets by beating two European sides. First, they handled the weak Slovaks by five, and then they shocked everyone by taking down Sweden by five goals too. They’ve got dangerous wingers who score most of their stuff from the perimeter or on fast breaks.
Most of their starters play in the Spanish league, but they’ve got a few solid guys playing domestically. In goal, you've got Matthew Schulz, who's of German descent; he used to play in the top Spanish tier and is currently with the second-division club Badajoz. He’s been pulling off about 40% saves in this tournament. Over on the left wing, there’s Vidal, playing for Guadalajara in Spain, though he isn't really making huge waves. However, the right side is much scarier thanks to Vieyr, one of three guys out of Torrevieja, and he’s sitting pretty high on the scoring charts. Their pivot is Carou from Ademar Leon; he doesn't shoot a ton, but his efficiency is insane—he’s perfect at 6/6 in the tournament and 14/14 in the Spanish league. On the left back, their main man is Federio Fernandez, playing for local side UNLu. He’s easily their leading scorer and definitely eats up the most shots, usually aiming for the right side. The playmaking is handled by Simoneta, Diego and Sebastian, both from Torrevieja. Diego is actually the team's second-highest scorer here, while Sebastian has only put up eight goals, even though he’s scored twice as many as his brother for their club back home. On the right, they have Pizarro doing quite well with 16 goals, and the veteran Kogovsek also plays that spot.
If Denmark beats Poland and Mexico takes down Sweden, America could jump into second place tomorrow.
🤣🤣