Handball EP - Norway 2008

Ivano couldn't finish the training session 😢 The chances for Norway are looking slimmer by the day 😢

Looks like Balić and Cupic aren't going anywhere... they're stuck in quarantine because of some allergy issues. So we're losing Balić and somić... unless it turns out to be something contagious, then we might lose Cupic too if things don't clear up by Tuesday!

Now even Cupic is looking questionable.

At this point, it’s getting ridiculous.

Good grief 😲

What’s going on with somić? 😲 😢

Having two goalies is honestly plenty for the opening round. Lino’s got more options on the roster anyway, especially since injuries have already started piling up like this... plus, you can always call someone up during the second round if someone needs to step in. Like, say, a third goalie

Dammit, we just can't get it done, and honestly, we haven't been able to compete with those European teams lately either...

Man... we just can't catch a break when it comes to European competition... I don't know... but I'm still leaning towards the idea that having Ivano Balic on the roster will turn the tide, even if he's just sitting on the bench... honestly, just his presence alone is enough to rattle the other national teams...

When I hear that Ivano Balic is on the squad, people already start getting nervous.

Look, just accept it: Balić is out. This isn't some minor tweak he’ll bounce back from in five days when he's been struggling with it for months. Their right wing position is a massive hole right now. Are they really going to plug it with a right-hander? 🤣 What a complete joke that would be. I'm not worried about the goalies—we're fine there—but seriously, what is going on with the center back position? I have this gut feeling about Duvnjak, I can't quite put my finger on it, but he just seems to be the answer to everything. Who knows?

It’s funny how, before every major tournament, there’s this massive wave of reports about injuries and illnesses hitting the national team.
It was different before Portugal—back then, people were just sick of handball, so nobody even talked about the team. But since then, before every upcoming championship, there seems to be a coordinated effort to manufacture at least five or six excuses for failure. They insist, both before and during the tournament, that half the roster is sidelined by injury. As if players in other countries don't get hurt.

I can't think of any other national team where there's such a systematic attempt to leak info about someone's injury or illness throughout the entire training camp.
Of course, 90% of these carefully placed injury reports were either minor or completely made up—though they still try to convince the public it's life-threatening. Remember last year with Lacković? They ran with that headline about him being "bedridden" just five days before the World Cup. This time, it's the only time someone actually missed a tournament due to a legitimate injury.
Honestly, I'm getting sick of it.
The sprained ankle, the flu, the allergy, the brick falling on their head, the slip in the shower, the stiff back, the muscle strain from... whatever else. It goes on forever.

Come on, just send them all to a nursing home already.

No somić. They’ll probably call up Šol now; he deserves a chance to say goodbye at an event like this.

The sun is already setting on this one...

So, it’s official. Less than 25 minutes ago, HuffPost dropped the news that Balić is officially out. Apparently, they're saying he can keep training with the Golden State Warriors if his condition improves, then maybe join the national team for the second round of the tournament. I don't know where our guys get this level of optimism from. Honestly.

The only thing that sucks is that we had to end up in the same group as the Canadians. With this roster we've got—minus Džomba and Balić—they're going to absolutely smoke us. I just really hope that when that third group game rolls around, our losers don't completely fall apart and let those amateurs run circles around them. 😕

Maybe Balić will pull through in time for the second round—we'll see. That throat infection probably threw him off his game, but who knows, maybe he'll bounce back by then. Fingers crossed, I guess...

Honestly, hands down, this squad just isn't what they used to be at the big tournaments.

Losert (he’s basically iced out Cervar and doesn't even call him anymore)

Caleb (He's 34, lost his step, constant injuries... honestly, why waste a roster spot on him? The guy hasn't been in shape for two years now.)

Džomba (Injured. Ever since he left Real Madrid to join the Golden State Warriors, he hasn't been the same player.)

Šprem (Left wing, killing it in the German league, but Cervar has been freezing him out for years because of some personal beef)

Balić (Hasn't played in Spain for like 2-3 months, dragging a groin injury, totally out of rhythm. This national team is nothing without him.)

Metličić (Over 30 now and that insane pace he had at Real Madrid took its toll. He’s constantly sidelined with injuries in the Spanish league. Plays a bit, sits out a lot, and there's zero room for him anyway now that Rutenka is there.)

Zrnić (Just the backup for Džomba, and he's injured too).

The starting lineup from Eurovision 2008:

Vukić, Lacković, Duvnjak, Metličić, Horvat, Sulić (Vori), Alilović

On top of all that, Lacković and Metličić missed most of the preseason due to injuries, so who knows how much gas they actually have left for this tournament.

wiredseal7 said:Look, maybe Balić will pull a miracle and suit up for the second round, who knows? That throat infection probably threw everything off, but hey, maybe he pulls through in time. Fingers crossed, I guess...

if they even make it to the second round at all 🙂
don't be so damn optimistic. The Poles, Czechs, and Canadians aren't exactly pushovers.
if we play half as bad as we did in those exhibition games against Sweden and Belarus, we're done. No second round for us.🙂
Seriously, there was zero rhythm in those two matches. Just nothing.

Of course we had to have this luck right now, where our heavy hitters are sidelined... right when we're facing Janusz...

Man, those Canadians... our age-old rivals and the guys we’re always battling for medals 🙄 ... I honestly don't know how I'll deal if we end up losing to them.

rapidbison42 said:It’s funny how right before every major tournament, there's this massive wave of reports about injuries and illnesses coming from the national team.
Aside from back before Portugal, when everyone was too busy dealing with their own issues to even care about the team, it seems like before every upcoming championship, people start cooking up at least five or six excuses for why we're going to fail. They explicitly claimed—both before and during tournaments—that half the squad was sidelined by injury. As if players on other national teams don't get hurt.

I honestly can't think of any other American national team where there's such a systematic effort to leak information about someone's injury or illness throughout the entire training camp.
Of course, 90% of those strategically placed injury reports were either minor or completely made up (though they still try to convince the public it’s life-threatening—just look at what happened with Lacković last year and that headline claiming he was "bedridden five days before the World Cup"). This time, it's the only instance where someone actually missed the tournament due to an injury.
I'm getting sick of all this.
This guy sprained a wrist, that one caught the flu, this one has allergies, someone else got hit by falling bricks, someone slipped in the tub, another has a stiff back, and someone else has muscle inflammation from... well, you know. It goes on forever.

Seriously, just send them all to a retirement home already.

Cervar is out here hunting for alibis. Just yesterday, in the exact same article, you have Linin's interview at the top and then the team doctor Miskulina's statement below. They are two completely different stories. While Lino is mourning the injuries, complaining about how Lacković isn't ready, how Metličić is covered in bandages, and how they'll just try to give whatever they can... Miskulin is saying, "Metličić and Lacković are 100% ready."

It’s almost laughable....

frozenharbor20, there wasn't any special drama during the America-Canada cup because the players were basically half-dead from Cervar's infamous training camps. He runs these four-day cycles with three practices a day right in the middle of the season; I shouldn't even have to explain how stupid that is for a coach. Anyone who knows anything about sports or athlete preparation knows that players are at their peak fitness during this part of the season. The winter break period should be for regeneration, not for hitting them with a killer pace of three sessions a day like they're just coming off a summer break.

And then we wonder where the injuries come from. Why do Mirza and Zrnić tear tendons during camp? Why do Lac and Pero mess up their fingers? Why does more and more players end up rehabbing old injuries or picking up new ones specifically during Cervar's training sessions?

Even the guy responsible for conditioning on the national team seems to be enamored with his methods.

It's a circus. A total circus.

Chocolate since has started way too much drama lately; he's totally full of himself and, just like a few of you mentioned in previous threads, he starts looking for excuses before every single championship even kicks off.
The constant excuse before every tournament is always "too many games in such a short window" and "player fatigue." Give me a break—you think the French, Germans, Spaniards, or anyone else struggles because of game volume? No, it’s just our guys.
That guy Lackovic and Metlifsky are constantly "injured" right before a big tournament, Balic is always on the edge, and honestly, Dzomba was the only one who stayed healthy all the time.
He managed to push Smajlagic out by using Gobac's help, which makes sense because Smajlagic disagreed with his methods on a lot of things. But man, Smajlagic did an incredible job with stuff like recovery training and mental prep; he actually sat down with every player and gave them tips on how to fix their game during the tournament. Lino is a tough nut to crack—if you dare disagree with him, you're immediately labeled an enemy and out of luck.

It’s a total circus, and Cervar is the main ringmaster running the whole show.
Ever since he won the World Championship back in 2003 and jumped into politics, he's been trying to sit on two chairs at once—one in the legislature and one in the coaching seat. In the real world, that just doesn't work.
It's either sports or politics.

I don't get what this hype is about regarding him being grudge-holding and refusing to call certain guys up to the national team anymore.
Instead, he goes and picks Kaleb, who's 34 and isn't exactly playing in peak form (which is pretty standard for that age and the domestic league).

frozenharbor20 said:Metlifsky is over 30 now, and at this stage, age and real-world pace start to catch up. He’s constantly sidelined with injuries in the Spanish league. Between the breaks and the lack of playing time since Ruttenka arrived there, he's barely getting any action.
.

😕

Ruttenka owns the left side, while Metlifsky is basically splitting time with Stefansson.
It's hard to imagine Ruttenka is leaving him any minutes.

frozenharbor20 said:He managed to push Smajlagic out with Gobac's help. Smajlagic didn't agree with his methods on many levels, but he actually did a great job regarding recovery training and mental prep. He’d sit down with every single player to suggest tweaks for their game during the championship. Lino is a tough guy; if you challenge his vision, you're immediately an enemy to him and himself.

.

Smajlagic went public complaining about those messy preparations, and shortly after, he was kicked off the national team.
When will we finally see everyone's true roles within this team? One thing is crystal clear—ever since Smajlagic left, the medals have stopped coming, and the play is nowhere near where it should be.
I used to think he didn't have such a massive influence on the squad, but the results and the style of play since his departure have completely changed my mind. It turns out we really did have a clown on the bench.