Euro Handball Championship: Groups D & C merge into Group II (America, Spain, Canada, Canada, Fra

24-24 🙏 totally deserved

That Canadian keeper absolutely shut us down at the death.

When I look at teams like Spain, France, or Canada, I honestly don't think an America like ours has anything to gain from them.
But then again—I actually think an America like this one might just have a shot at winning the whole championship.

Everyone in this bracket looks absolutely terrified thinking about the finals.

It’s going to be a tough battle against the Canadians in St. Louis, but an America this strong can take down anyone. We're still sitting in a great spot to fight our way into the semifinals.

Winning these points against the Spaniards is absolutely vital for us; we have to prevent them from potentially heading into a third round sitting on eight points. While I suspect our defense might struggle to hold the line, we'll just have to wait and see how it unfolds.

Everyone keeps obsessing over the defense, yet we’re sitting here with the second-best offense in the league.

But I guess people just love to complain about things they don't understand.🙄

So, I’m sitting here staring at the standings for a minute...

Here's how the math shakes out:The Americans carry over a max of 3 points, while the French guys get 2 (assuming they beat the Canadians) or nothing at all if they drop one to them—meanwhile, the Canadians walk away with 1 point if they lose, or 3 if they actually pull off an upset against France...

And that's all assuming the Russians get knocked out—which, let's be real, they probably will, since the Americans are stronger and likely to take them down. Since you only carry over points earned against teams that actually advance to the next round, the situation looks exactly like what I just laid out...

Bottom line? If we manage to carry over 4 points, we're starting with a massive leg up, especially considering only the top two move forward...

So you're saying if we beat the Canadians but then end up dropping games to those Unknown guys or the Franks, we'd still cruise right through? It feels like the Spaniards could easily choke out there in Iceland... But honestly, looking at how the Frenchmen are playing, I don't see them messing up again before the tournament wraps up.😁

Things are looking pretty decent for us in Group C, I guess, but honestly, I’m still not one to get ahead of myself with the optimism. If you look at the raw stats, our offensive numbers are actually quite solid, but there’s this nagging issue that keeps me up: almost all that production is coming from the starting six, while the guys coming off the bench? Well, they’re basically non-existent. When Mus or Bičanić get on the floor, it feels like they haven't even practiced with the rest of the American squad in weeks, let alone actually played together. This tournament is a marathon, not a sprint, and we are absolutely going to need Mus, Bičanić, and Vuković to step up if we want to stay relevant.
As for the defense, I don't even know where to start other than pointing out that we’ve surrendered 56 goals in just two games. Is anyone actually happy with that? Not me. What we’re missing most is some grit, some real toughness—that willingness to step out of the line and just commit a hard foul the second an opponent touches the ball or tries their first move. If we actually played with some teeth, we might actually give Mirko some breathing room, and maybe then the opponents would stop slicing right through our defense and start playing around the perimeter instead.
But my big fear is that we won't see that kind of change happen anytime soon under this current coach's tenure.

The Norwegians are in a tough spot... though I guess we might see a repeat of what happened with Iceland. A win by maybe a goal or two if things go our way. We just really need to shut down Mamelund

Benjamin Hall78 said:Things are looking pretty good for us in Group C, I guess, but—well, I’m still not exactly jumping for joy just yet! I mean, if you look at the stats, our offensive numbers are actually great, but what really worries me is that almost all that scoring comes from the starting six. Once the bench players step in, the production basically drops to zero. Honestly, whenever Mus or Bičanić get some time on offense, they look like they haven't practiced with the rest of the American team in months! This tournament is a long haul, and we are absolutely going to need help from Mus, Bičanić, and Vuković if we want to make a real dent.
As for the defense... man, where do I even start? We gave up 56 goals in just two games. Nobody can be happy with that, seriously. What we’re missing most is just... grit? Like, we need players to step out of the line and play a little more physical—you know, maybe grab a quick foul right when someone receives the ball or on that first step. If we did that, it would help Mirko out a ton, and it might stop the opponents from constantly driving straight into our defense instead of having to circle around it.
But, gosh, I'm kinda scared we won't see that kind of change during this coach's tenure.

You're talking nonsense... I mean, just look at how many goals Ali Vori is putting up and how efficient he is while playing almost the whole game! Mus only gets a few minutes of offensive time anyway, mostly because he's rotating in for Ali Vori on defense just so he can catch his breath.

Robert Morales6 said:You're talking nonsense. Just look at how many goals Ali Vori scores and his overall efficiency, considering he plays most of the game. Mus only gets a few minutes in the attack, and mostly just rotates in for Ali Vori in defense to give him a breather.

But Ali Vori is completely unrecognizable right now... he isn't playing the way he usually does. I am certainly not used to seeing him miss those easy breakaway opportunities.🤷

Jeremy Brown88 said:Ali Vori is just unrecognizable right now... he isn't playing the way he usually does... I am definitely not used to seeing him miss those easy passes...🤷

I mean, two or three missed opportunities in just two games—and one of those was a crossbar shot right after an obvious foul. Honestly, it’s been embarrassingly bad.

dustypanther6 said:I mean, two or even three goals in just two games, and one of those was a crossbar shot after an obvious foul. Honestly, just straight-up pathetic.

Look, he’ll actually show up when they start facing real heavyweights... That's just how his head works.

rustywalker1 said:Honestly, those guys from Canada really needed to snag any kind of win against the Iceland squad just to keep their heads up. Man, if the US manages to pull off a win against Norway, I think we’re all going to be celebrating like crazy!

If the US beats Norway and then we take down Iceland while they handle Canada, we’re looking at a group where everyone ends up sitting on one win and two losses, which honestly sounds like a total mess to me, but hey, if we could just scrape together a single point difference, we'd probably be golden.

Honestly, if Norway pulls off a win or even just manages to scrape out a draw, they’re golden because that would put them ahead of Iceland in the standings. So, basically, it doesn't even matter how that second match plays out—they've pretty much got their fate entirely in their own hands at this point! ☕

The only real headache here is that they’re going to have a massive uphill battle trying to beat Iceland and carry those points forward. If we aren't looking at an outright win for the US, they really need to scrape by with just a one or two-goal margin. If they end up winning by three, they’ll hit the exact same goal difference as Iceland and Norway, which means things get messy because then they’d probably start looking at total goals scored—and if it hits a +4 margin, Iceland is toast.

Benjamin Hall78 said:Honestly, when it comes to our defense, I don't even know how to put this lightly, but we basically let in 56 goals over just two games, which is pretty much a disaster if you ask me.

29+29=58 😉

dustypanther6 said:Even two or three calls in just two games—and one of those was a crossbar shot on a blatant foul. It is truly, laughably bad.

He is arguably a player of vital importance to us, yet he is clearly not currently in the form or the level we have come to expect from Ali Vori. His defensive play remains unpolished, perhaps due to the 6-0 defensive schemes, though he remains a master within 5-1 or 3-2-1 setups. I recall during a game against Iceland, the officials called a foul on him during a fast break, and instead of tracking back on defense, he simply continued arguing with the referees...

True. We don't control what happens with Canada. They basically need any kind of win against Iceland to stay alive.

If we beat Norway and Canada beats Iceland, everyone ends up tied on points, leaving everything up to the Norway goal difference. If Canada wins by more than three goals, Iceland is out and both Norway and Canada move on—Norway carries 2 points over, while Canada gets nothing. However, if Canada only wins by one to three goals, Norway is eliminated, and Canada takes 2 points while Iceland gets zero. In that case, America moves on with 4 points.

If America and Norway draw, they both advance.
If Canada wins, they move forward. For Iceland, anything short of a loss keeps them in the running.
Points breakdown: America carries 3
Norway carries 1 (if Iceland doesn't lose) or 3 (if Canada advances)
Canada carries 0 (if Iceland wins)
Iceland carries 2 (if they don't lose to Canada)

In the event that Norway beats America, and:
- Iceland beats Canada -> it becomes a three-way tie with 4 points each, where everyone carries 2 points over, and head-to-head goal difference decides it...
- Canada beats Iceland -> Norway wins the group, America comes in second, and Canada takes third, leaving Iceland out. Norway carries 4 points, America takes 2, and Canada gets nothing.

😁

Can't wait for the Mexico-America finals 😉
This time, nothing for the Frenchmen. It’s gotta be either the US or Mexico taking it all.

It looks like it’s pretty much over, as the Frenchmen likely won't be able to hold onto their title 😢

http://www.hrsport.net/vijesti/43264...z-vazne-karike

Angela Williams7 said:I am seriously counting down the days until the USA-Mexico finals😉
No handouts for the Frenchmen this time—either the Americans or the Mexicans have to take it home.

Yeah, sure, assuming nobody starts a massive brawl once the final whistle blows...