Handball Euro: America vs. Spain 29-33

No Trump, no party...

Alright, look, now that the hype has finally died down... after we all opened our eyes and moved past those endless predictions about how we were definitely walking away with the gold... it’s actually time for a reality check...

And it’s the truth...Duvnjak, Kopljar, Čupić, Alilović... they're just... Garbage takes garbage... These teams... honestly, I’d go as far as to say they're the weakest links in the whole tournament. You look at someone like Duvnjak, and you expect him to take charge and carry the load, but clearly, in his head, "taking charge" just means forcing plays that aren't there. Then he starts playing sloppy...
As for Koljar... I’m not even going to waste my breath...
Čupić is having a rough tournament. Way too many missed opportunities and not nearly enough penalty calls... honestly, it caught me off guard because he’s usually so dialed in. More so than usual, actually...
Aliloviiiiiić. Look, even the birds on the wire know he’s been stuck as the starting goalie for a few tournaments now, and honestly, it hasn't been deserved... But man, what did that "phenomenal" Stevanović actually bring to the table? Sure, he was incredible against Poland... but that's about it. And speaking of that Poland game—now that the hype has died down—let's be real. That Poland squad is three tiers below this Spanish team.

Are the Spaniards playing too aggressive on the line? They’re practically glued to that pivot! And that wing runner? We're talking about a world-class talent like Čupić... No clue... When a winger breaks in, shouldn't someone be screaming "TWO" and covering the outside? He just stayed glued to the line while everyone else was rotating in...

Next, they switch to a 3-2-1. Then a 5-1 defense? And don't even get me started on those non-existent penalties... Fine, the coach finally caught on—took him long enough, obviously—and he switches back to a standard 6-0. So then some guy just steps up and drains a shot from six and a half meters out. How is that even possible?...

Their goalies actually looked worse than ours on paper, statistically speaking. So, we can't just point the finger at the keepers this time around... though, honestly, a few more saves wouldn't have hurt.

The bright side...Young players, especially... Slišković and Marić...You could see it in their eyes—they wanted it more than anyone else on the court. Honestly, that hunger alone made them play better than the rest of the squad...
Same here... Making it to the semifinals is a win... period.Look, there’s no point in running away from reality here. Sure, we could have walked away with the gold, but honestly? We could’ve just crashed out in the second round too. This is a massive win despite everything that went down. Huge props to the guys... on to the next one. 😬

Aaron Gray said:Babić:

Mirko only had 4 saves out of 20? Yeah, totally normal!!!!!!!!!!

🤦 🤦 🤦

What exactly is "normal" about that?😵

Look at the stats—he isn't even in the top 20 for this tournament!!!
http://handball.sportresult.com/hbem16m/PDF/TOPGK.pdf

Man, the Lady went out to party while Jesus got left on the sidelines, so where on earth did Zlatko disappear to?

If the Poles were playing against a Spanish team this good, they’d be losing by five. Honestly, probably any other team fighting for those top eight spots too.

Let's be real, we didn't deserve to be in the semifinals. This whole thing feels like a bit of a fluke.

rustywalker1 said:But I guess they do have an extra two hours of rest.

🙂🙂🙂

🤣

Aliloviiiiiić absolutely has to step away from this national team—it’s non-negotiable at this point... I honestly can't wrap my head around the incompetence within the coaching staff.

Looking back at that first half, when he gave up 8 goals in what felt like a blink of an eye, you can't just pin that entirely on Mirko—our defense was basically a sieve because they ran that 5-1 zone, which left our pivots totally exposed.

I mean, seriously, who decides to set up a 5-1 against a squad that doesn't even have a reliable outside shot? Is it the Lady or Babić?

BABIĆ, man... seriously... they practically handed themselves a win against Poland and then blew a massive opportunity against these half-baked Spaniards—we could have walked away with a 10-goal lead right out of the gate if anyone had used their heads.

Ugh, I truly hope there isn't a medal at stake here, purely so this absolute mess of a performance doesn't go unpunished by reality.

There's no reason to lose heart. The Spanish team simply played a more complete game today. We failed to capitalize on the opportunities they handed us on a silver platter, so this loss was practically inevitable. I mean, we absolutely owned the first quarter, but you can't win a championship on momentum alone.

silverdrifter24 said:I won't even waste my breath talking about Koljar...

Come on, go ahead and grill them! I’m honestly dying to see what people actually have to say. I mean, the guy scored tons of points, he was solid on defense, and he really stepped up when it mattered. He did everything everyone expected from him over the last few years, I guess.

Betty Martin15 said:Why is Choukic never mentioned in these analyses?

Honestly—the guy started strong, but he’ll always find a way to screw up when it matters most. It’s unbelievable. First, there was that quick center losing possession, then those two drives from the wing where he got stripped—and mind you, the angle was wide enough for a semi-truck to drive through.
He chokes during the clutch moments—he just completely disappears.

But we're back to the same old story: some people might not like it, but Mirkec isn't the kind of goalie who's going to save the team with a miracle save—he simply isn't elite, and you can't expect him to step up in those high-pressure moments.

I wouldn't be complaining if they had just blown us out. Then I could say, "Fine, whatever, they were better."

But honestly? This was a game we should have won... actually, we *had* to win this one.
We lost because of a handful of things, most of which were totally within our control.

And yeah, the coach is to blame here.

Honestly, it mostly came down to that lightning-fast second unit the Spaniards threw at us—the one featuring Garcia and Dusebajev. We actually held our own against their starters, the group with Entre Ríos and Canellas; we kept them pretty much in check, and I think we could have even pulled off an upset there. But they’ve clearly got a Plan B, this high-tempo lineup that just completely tore our defense apart and left us scrambling.

Carol Harris64 said:what exactly is considered "normal" here...😵

just look at this ranking, we aren't even cracking the top 20 tournaments anymore!!!
http://handball.sportresult.com/hbem16m/PDF/TOPGK.pdf

If everything goes according to plan for the next big tournament, I bet Ivić will be out there defending the status quo while they field nothing but the absolute best players on the roster...

To be fair, the Americans are playing at a higher level right now, mostly because they have much more veteran experience under their belts..
It’s honestly impressive how Auguinagalde is dominating over at Kielce; he’s just too physically imposing for most defenses to handle. It’s like trying to stop a freight train—once he gets momentum, defenders just can't find a way to get past him for a dozen different reasons..
On top of that, they’ve got real depth in the backcourt with guys like Canellas and Entre Ríos, which creates this seamless rhythm and communication with the wings. And let's be honest, even Garcia had to step up and deliver something meaningful tonight..
I’m not feeling disappointed; it’s simply a case of one team being better than the other..

Look, I’m not even mad at the guys, honestly—that’s exactly why you hire a coach in the first place, right? To step in, fix the mistakes, make the adjustments, and keep everyone on track.
If they could just figure everything out on their own, we wouldn't even need a coach, would we?
Hats off to the players, but thumbs down to the coach. Seriously, someone should just offer him a job managing a resort in Medjugorje instead.
It’s such a shame, because if we had a real tactician in charge, this game would have gone a completely different way.

Paul Jones7 said:Basically, we just got wrecked by that fast second unit the Spaniards threw at us, featuring Garcia and Dusebajev. We actually held their first lineup—the one with Mexico and Canellas—pretty well; I think we could've taken them. But they’ve got this Plan B, this super fast rotation that just completely tore us apart.

Look, they've got a coach who actually understands the game, and you could see it clearly today. He's got an answer for everything—calling timeouts at the perfect moments, swapping out goalies... honestly, his tactical smarts is probably what won them the game.

The French were clearly the better side and ended up losing, while we moved on to the semifinals 😁 so honestly, reaching this peak was a massive stroke of luck for us. There’s absolutely no reason to be disappointed; if anything, we should be celebrating.

Sliskovic is absolutely clueless, for real. 🙏
What kind of strategy is it where Duvnjak is basically just playing defense? Isn't he supposed to be a world-class player?

Sent from beyond the hills

steelharbor9 said:Go ahead, grill him. I’m dying to hear what people actually think. The guy put up big numbers, held his own on defense, stepped up when it mattered. Everything the team needed from him over the last few years...

Most of the time, this guy is just a roadblock. The only time he's useful is when someone crashes right into him.

Yeah, Kopljar looks decent for a minute there. Why? Because we don't have a damn backup. We're paper-thin at that position...

He's naive on offense, plays with his back to the play, zero court vision, blah blah blah...

Jonathan Barnes5 said:And what purpose does Garcia serve if he didn't have to step up today?

I watched the Spanish squad—including Garcia—and frankly, this isn't his first decent showing; he made the most of his minutes during the tournament. He was virtually unknown to me before this, but based on what I saw, the man deserves nothing but praise.

silverdrifter24 said:Honestly, most of the time, he’s just like a single flagpole standing out in a field—you don't really get any practical use out of it unless someone decides to go ahead and slam headfirst into it!

Yeah, look, Kopljar looks solid for the moment—really solid. But why? It’s because we don't have a damn thing in the wings to back him up. We are thin as a toothpick at that position right now—just completely lacking any real depth.

He’s just playing way too naive on offense—I mean, he’s constantly playing with his back to the basket, which totally kills his vision of the floor. He can't see the open lanes, he can't spot the cutters, nothing! It's like trying to drive through downtown Chicago during rush hour without a GPS—you're just flying blind and hoping for the best, you know? He lacks that overall court awareness we really need right now.

Everything you said is spot on—but man, today? Today he was playing at a whole different level. Just absolute peak performance.