Photo by HRS
January 12, 2024 – Croatia opened EHF Euro 2024 in Germany with an impressive victory against favorites Spain (39-29).
The Croatia handball team met Spain in the first round of Group B at the European Championship in Germany on Friday night. This tournament marks the 16th European Championship, and Croatia is one of three national teams that has participated in all championships so far.
Goran Perkovac’s team faced the toughest opponent in the group at the start of the tournament and will also face Austria and Romania in Group B.
Spain was the favorite in this game, but Croatia surprised tonight with brilliant play and outstanding support from the stands in Mannheim. Croatia showed they were back and ready to do something big in Germany. This new and improved team has fresh and fierce energy on the court, and if tonight tells us anything, this team is hungry for a medal.
Croatia was beyond convincing in the first half and led 5-1 already in the 7th minute. They more or less held a +5 lead and went into halftime up 18-14. Their momentum continued in the second half, and by the 34th minute, Croatia was up by 8 goals. By the 37th minute, it was 25-16, and with 10 minutes to go, it was 34-23.
The stands were loud, with Croatia fans singing “večeras je naša fešta”. After this performance, there is much to celebrate.
With two minutes to go, Croatia led by 10 goals (38-28) and in the final minute, up by 11. The game ended 39-29.
Croatia plays Austria next on Sunday at 20:30. The top two teams from the group advance to the next round.
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