Portugal stun Norway at the start of the main round

Paulo Pereira's team delivered one of their best performances so far and managed to win against Norway for the first time after 24 years, the last time being at the EHF EURO 2000 played in Croatia.

GROUP II

Norway vs Portugal 32:37 (15:18)

• Kristian Bjørnsen was unstoppable from the wing at the start of the game, keeping Norway in front for 20 minutes
• Portugal shifted momentum in the last 10 minutes of the first half, producing a 5:0 goal run to take over the lead for the first time since 2:1
• Norway converted 60 per cent of their shots in the first half, while Portugal were at 78 per cent and the two sides’ shooting efficiency remained at similar levels throughout the game
• both Torbjørn Bergerud and Kristian Sæverås got a chance between the posts, but despite 13 saves  between them they could not stop the Costa brothers in the decisive moments
• Pedro Portela's in-flight goal, making him Portugal's top scorer in the game after netting eight times from eight attempts, sealed the deal for Portugal. Portela was voted as Grundfos Player of the Match
• Sander Sagosen, Harald Reinkind and Christian O'Sullivan surpassed Bjarte Myrhol in the number of Men's EHF EURO matches played for Norway and are now the most capped EHF EURO Norwegian players with 38 games played

Portuguese talent beats Norway

Portugal have clearly learned their lessons from the first Scandinavian clash against Denmark. Good defensive readings of Norway's game and smart attacks with some explosive moves from Francisco Costa and Pedro Oliveira's fast breaks gave Portugal a chance not only to play level but also to make Norway sweat throughout the whole 60 minutes.

In the crucial last moments of the game, the strength of the team was evident as Martim and Francisco Costa took responsibility in building the attack while Pedro Portela cruised to a perfect match.

For the third time in a row at the EHF EURO 2024, Norway found themselves in an exciting finish and once again failed to secure a win. Head coach Jonas Wille will have many question marks above his head ahead of the duel against the Netherlands.

Photos © Kolektiff Images