Race for EHF EURO Cup semi-finals heats up; top duel in Romania
Spotless sides Norway and Denmark have already qualified for the semi-finals of the Women’s EHF EURO Cup 2026, while two teams from each group are still in the race for the remaining two tickets. The round 5 games on Wednesday and Thursday might prove decisive in the race for the trophy.
We are up against a very tough opponent. We already took some lessons from our first meeting back in October in Mielec, where we lost by eight goals. I believe we can put in a much better performance this time, especially playing at home in Šaľa. It won’t be easy — the season is coming to an end and the players are already feeling the fatigue. But I hope we can deliver and give our fans something to be happy about. Our goal is to play our best EURO Cup match.
The last time (against Slovakia) and the two lost matches against Norway were not our best performances, so now we need to eliminate the things that did not work. We have to make sure that we show our quality, especially in defence. Every national team has the same amount of time to prepare, so each of us must know the tactical assumptions from the very beginning.
We need to strengthen our defensive moments and stick to the rules we’ve set in order to be even more efficient. We need consistency in our performances and a much more confident attitude. A good performance can give us confidence for the European Championship.
Frida Brandbu Andersen and Stella Waagan Kruse are new to the squad. Both have shown strong form in the REMA 1000 League over a sustained period and are now being given the opportunity to test themselves against Romania and Slovakia.
We are going to play against Hungary and Denmark next international week. Both teams played quarter-finals last World Championship. So, for sure, they are goning to be tough matches, but we must try to show our best version during all 60 minutes in both games. It’s time that we show our strong character and fighter personality during the matches.
We would obviously like to qualify for the semi-finals of the EHF EURO Cup, and we need two victories for that this week. I hope we can succeed. However, we have to be focused and play better than previously in March against Denmark.
Denmark is a top level opponent. They play fast and modern handball. It will be a good test for us and will show how much we have improved physically and tactically since our last match against them. I expect a tough and fast game.
We had a strong week in March, and that gives us a good opportunity to quickly build on the work we started. This time it’s about bringing even more players into our way of doing things — both on and off the court — so we become even sharper as a team. The match will be important for us in terms of tempo and connections. Czechia will be a good test; a team aiming to peak at home in December.
