December 19, 2020 – Croatia and Denmark will play the third-place match of the Women’s Handball Euros on Sunday at 3:30 pm in Denmark.
After losing to France in the semi-final on Friday, the Croatia women’s handball team will play against the host Denmark in the match for third place at the European Championships.
Norway defeated Denmark 27:24 in the second semi-final match on Friday.
Norway had two big series in the second half
Denmark opened the match better. Apart from the beginning (1:0), the host of the championship was never behind in the first half. Denmark’s biggest advantage was when they were up by four goals, and they went into halftime with an excellent plus three (13:10).
However, at the beginning of the second half, Norway had a 4:1 series and was back in the lead. It was played goal to goal until just before the end of the match when Norway had a 6:1 series and had a five-goal advantage (27:22).
The most efficient for Norway was Nora Mork with six goals, while Mia Rey scored the most for Denmark, also with six goals.
Norway deservedly won a spot in the final for the 11th time, while Denmark will fight for the bronze for the third time.
Norway is the record holder with seven European titles from ten appearances in the final so far. They lost twice to Denmark in the championships hosted by Denmark, and they also lost the 2012 final in Serbia to Montenegro, in a game with two overtimes. Norway also has one bronze medal.
France will play in the final for the second time in a row. Two years ago, they beat Russia in the final (24:21) in front of their fans.
Croatia has already achieved the best result at the European Championships
The match for third place is scheduled for Sunday at 3:30 pm. The final is at 6 pm. Recall that Croatia lost to France in the semi-final on Friday (19:30).
Regardless of the outcome of Sunday’s match, the Croatia women’s handball team have already achieved the best placement at the European Championships.
Croatia entered the Euros as the ultimate underdog, and coach Nenad Šoštarić had many problems with injuries and the selection of players before they left for Denmark. However, even with a weakened squad, Croatia shocked favorite Hungary in the first round, then the world champions the Netherlands and Serbia in the remaining group stage games.
Croatia opened the second round with a victory against another favorite, Romania, and then suffered their first defeat against a mighty Norway. Croatia then topped Germany in a decisive match for a spot in their first-ever European Championship semi-final, where they lost to France.
Croatia’s best result at the Euros thus far is fifth place in 1994.
Source: Index.hr
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