Handball journeys

  Final day Sunday 30 January 2022 Two defeats so much easier to swallow when you are not 'physically' in the arena. Or so I hoped. Gold medal match Final 17h GMT SPAIN - SWEDEN Rodrigo starting. Super for Emilie and Marie Laetitia. MVP Gotfridsson gets his first goal 0-1 2’13 Palicka gets the first save acrobatically against Fernandez Remember Palicka save in Egypt Bergendahl is everywhere 0-2 even as line player 4’ Casado reduces the arrears 5-1-1 defence by Spain but Carlsborgard prevails 1-3 6’ Great pass by Sarmiento for Fernandez Good steal by Jorge Corrales made Wanne miss. Still 3-4 9’ My shoes laces annoying me 6-6 14’ Palicka saves from Jorge like a bird Sublime pass and low shot saved by the ex-Kiel legend Rodrigo saves from Wanne on the 7-meter Palicka scores the lofty ball 6-8 18’ Palicka saves and 2-min plus 7-meter. Not nice. Figueras asking for 2 minutes. 8-9 20’ Tarrafeta twice left hanging 10-11 23’30 Fernandez squeezed the equaliser 11-11 27’40 Figueras turns

  Final day Sunday 30 January 2022 Bronze medal match 14h30 GMT DENMARK - FRANCE Gold medal Final 17h GMT SPAIN - SWEDEN On a day where I should be in Budapest instead of sunny (yes sunny!) London, I try to re-visit my choices made on Friday for the all-star contest Goalkeeper Vincent Gerard, France Viktor Hallgrímsson, Iceland Victor Kireev, Russia Kevin Møller, Denmark Gonzalo Perez de Vargas, Spain Nebojsa Simic, Montenegro It is a difficult one because three out of the six listed were out of this world on many occasions. I am going for Gonzalo. Left wing Sebastian Barthold, Norway Bjarki Mar Elisson, Iceland Angel Fernandez, Spain Emil Jakobsen, Denmark Milos Vujovic, Montenegro Hampus Wanne, Sweden This one is a tricky one because three of them already perform so well at the European club competition level and this would influence abnormally the decision. I went for Wanne. Left back Agustín Casado, Spain Mikkel Hansen, Denmark Sergei Mark Kosorotov, R

 Semi Final Day Friday 28 January 2022 14h30 3rd Group I – 3 rd Group II Iceland - Norway 17h 1 st Group II – 2 nd Group I Swap of matches Spain – Denmark After the tumultuous first match where Barthold got sent off harshly by the Spanish refs and on the buzzer after the second extra time the match was won. Iceland should have won it in normal time but the ball thrown towards the empty net was missed by a whisker. No time to type and work actively on something else I love as dearly. Main reason for the stay in London to be fair. Maqueda is sin binned for 2 mins and 1-0 after 2’30 Great leap by Aleix Both teams are nervous Error message like in Egypt last year In the meantime, 1-2 8’30 Great Gonzalo save Casado fires one in a fabulous yet nonchalant way but Lauge so pacy that he scores within seconds 2-3 10’ Landin read the line play attempt by Spain This is why he is the world player of the year Saugstrup gets a lovely ball from MH and this time h

Wednesday 26 January 2022 14h30 1A-1C REPLACED BY MONTENEGRO ICELAND We got to learn that the TIFO was prohibited by the EHF. Incredulous. What are the genuine reasons? Easy win by Iceland, a 10-goal margin even if they got a bit of a scare when Montenegro got it back to 5-goal deficit early in the second half The words by Montenegro are bit like EUSKERA after the media exercise I missed the beautiful goal, goal of the tournament. One of the images of the tournament was yesterday with the Norwegian manager for Sweden touching and looking at Gotfridsson in the eyes seconds before the time out docere.   17h 2A-1B REPLACED BY NETHERLANDS CROATIA 7-7 after 14 minutes 8-8 after 16’40 minutes What a passage of play by the Netherlands. Huge save by their second keeper and composed counter 10-9 20’ Classy left-handed goal and it’s a 2-goal advantage for the Orange army Gadza benefits from a lapse of concentration by the Netherlands reducing the arrears