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

They really ought to cruise through the group stage... honestly, the only way they slip up is if they run into a tough matchup against Iceland

Look, I’m sticking to my guns here: Lino, get your butt back here already!!! 😢

Eighteen saves... honestly, this was one of those games where they walked away with it solely because of their goalie. I mean, seriously, you could fire shots at him all day and he'd just snatch them out of the air like it was nothing. It felt just like that game we played against them during the World Cup in Germany when we went head-to-head...

Anthony Wilson4 said:Respect, man. I’m right there with you. Though, honestly, I think Pero is getting a bit older now. Two years ago, he could have still contributed way more on the court, but these days, his spot on the national team feels more like a lifetime achievement award or some high-ranking official's seat at a gala.

Believe me, the guy could probably step in for maybe 15 minutes per game and absolutely dominate—it would be 15 minutes of pure masterclass handball. Heck, even just 10 minutes during those high-pressure moments when the game is hanging in the balance. He’s got that veteran intelligence and that gritty, almost arrogant competitive edge. Even if he's just sitting on the bench, having him in the jersey would give the team a massive psychological boost.

The Americans look pretty desperate right now, and when your main heavy hitters are Mamelund and Lund, you really can't expect much more than this. They managed to stay competitive for a while, even pulling ahead by four, especially during that stretch when Barachet was holding things down on defense; but once Onesta swapped in his best defensive unit during the second half, it became a total one-way street.

I don't see Marić, Šego, or Batinović making the cut for the EP.
In my opinion, Marić really should have stayed on the roster instead of Mus, though I guess I'm not entirely sure about Mus as a player myself, but yeah, that's just how I see it...

Mus is definitely the stronger defensive presence here. While Marić might have an edge offensively when we're facing weaker teams, it isn't really enough to give him a distinct advantage, especially since Vori is likely to be playing all sixty minutes against top-tier opponents anyway. It just seems like the most logical choice, doesn't it?

So, what’s the deal with this Dr. Tomislav Madžar guy? I see he’s stepped in to take over for Miskulin... should we be bracing ourselves for more of those same old "talents" of his? Or maybe just preparing for the inevitable incompetence...

Mlad finished his medical degree right on schedule (as far as I can tell) back in a small town like Lubucki or maybe Medjugorje—I can't quite recall—so someone’s probably going to lump him in with that whole "Golužin" crowd...

He doesn't have any of that Miškulinov experience, but hey, it is what it is...

If you ask me, the physiotherapists working alongside the strength coach are way more important for player health anyway...

Especially if the physio actually knows how to do their job...

The role of the national team doctor is pretty minimal—they might order a specific scan or something similar, but their actual influence is pretty limited...

@Adam Collins4/">@@Adam Collins4
What's your take on the odds of actually seeing Balic back in action during this EP???

if Domančič shows up (again), then we're golden...

anyway...

Anthony Wilson4 said:Adam Collins4
What do you think the odds are that we actually see Balic playing at his best during this EP?

Paul Jones7 said:If Domančič decides to show up again—which, let's be honest, is probably going to happen—we might actually have a decent shot at this.

Anyway...

You really think we didn't try? Honestly—as if that hasn't been the baseline from day one.

Between abdominal wall issues and adductor injuries, I’m convinced the adductor is hands down the worst—it's just a nightmare.

You get this feeling that it’s really no big deal—just some minor hiccup—and then suddenly, out of nowhere, everything just grinds to a complete halt. Total standstill. It’s infuriating.

It really all boils down to how you respond to the treatment... I mean, seriously. My adductor was killing me—three separate times, too—back when I was just a kid, maybe sixteen or seventeen. Twice, it felt like nothing more than a minor nuisance, a little hiccup, you know? But that third time? Man, I absolutely lost my mind. I was bouncing from doctor to doctor like a maniac, constantly switching up my therapy, trying everything under the sun just to find some relief. It’s a total rollercoaster.

So, let's get things moving regarding our upcoming game—we've got Germans handling the officiating (Geipel and Helbig), and apparently, the supervisor is a Pole.

Does anyone actually still believe that Ivano is playing through an injury? 🤣

Ivano being injured is about as believable as Kopljar being a top-tier player.

Thanks for another tournament, Zoran.

If his injury was actually that devastating, he wouldn't be heading over to Mexico.

Now everyone’s talking about how Balic is going out on his own responsibility—give me a break. You're telling me a coach would knowingly go into a game playing shorthanded? Please. And suddenly, Vukovic is perfectly fine and ready to go.

It's the same old story from our camp: spin a little tale to make the opponent look like the bad guy, and build an excuse just in case we fail.

But hey, we'll see. Balic deals with chronic issues, so maybe he really is a coin toss right now. As far as I know, it's just Balic and the medical staff who know if he's fit or not. I'll let you guys decide why discussing that is considered such a taboo subject for the rest of the players. 🙂

Do you think we'll see any real upsets this tournament? Like, maybe some underdog making a deep run and hitting the semifinals for the first time ever?

I was thinking about teams like Norway—though looking at the odds, nobody's buying into that—maybe the Czech Republic with Jich, or even Canada. They’ve got a solid league, but they haven't really made an impact in the finals in ages.

Can Iceland pull off another miracle? Can Poland stay relevant at the top, or will Sweden finally find its way back to the elite level? I'd love to hear what people actually think.

Why on earth isn't this thread being recognized as a top-tier discussion? 🤷

dustyridge3 said:Why isn't this thread pinned yet? 🤷

Because we aren't part of the inner circle? 🤷

I'm serious though. For real, why hasn't this become a top topic...

It feels a bit premature to start calling shots about who’s going to win the championship, honestly. Aside from the French, everyone is still a question mark until we see how they show up and how prepared they actually are. There are so many young players and fresh faces popping up across all the different rosters lately. Personally, I think our guys have a real shot at making a deep run—I'm talking about walking away with a medal, any color. That said, I think it was a mistake to stick with that 3-2-1 defense. It’s just too aggressive; it gives opposing players way too much room to find their rhythm and spread out. If we try to play handball without physical contact, like we did during the last World Championship, we aren't going to get anywhere. You have to be aggressive and really step up on the player. As long as we stay physical, the offense will eventually pull its weight. Our path to the semifinals looks pretty brutal, but maybe that's a blessing in disguise. If we can grind our way into the top four through this bracket, things might actually smooth out in the semis, especially since I reckon our group and the French group are the two toughest ones in the tournament.

Chernov's interview..
I suppose it would be pretty interesting to see him sitting up in the stands with the national team in Mexico, though, as he mentioned, if they actually make it to the finals—which, honestly, I highly doubt 😁—he’ll probably show up.

http://vktel.net/component/videoflow...ightbox&id=332

Bičanić and Duvnjak sit down to talk about the EP, the Olympics, and how handball first started taking off over in their neck of the woods...