France and Netherlands seal crucial wins

GROUP 1

Luxembourg vs Türkiye 29:30 (11:14)

In the first match after the tragic death of their team captain Cemal Kütahya, who died with his five-year-old son in the devastating earthquake one month ago, Türkiye luckily took their first points in this qualification round.

Luxembourg were on an equal footing for most of the match, but missed too many chances at the beginning. From 3:8 onwards, the hosts clearly improved, and managed to reduce the gap to 17:18 and 22:23 and they even levelled the result at 24:24 during their best period in the first 20 minutes after the break, boosted by the goals of Leon Biel, Josip Ilic and Martin Müller.

The match was on the edge, the ”Red Lions” played with heart, while the visitors had lost their pace. A missed pass 20 seconds before the end provided Türkiye with the last attack – and Omur Pehlivan scored at the final buzzer and ended Luxembourgish hopes of taking their first point in an EHF EURO qualifier since 2002. 

GROUP 5

Netherlands vs Croatia 32:27 (15:13)

Goran Perkovac’s debut as the Croatia national team coach was spoilt by the Netherlands, who needed a win to counter the loss against Greece back in October.

But this time around, the Dutch side had the superb centre back Luc Steins back within the fold and it worked wonders. Steins and right back Kay Smits combined for 14 goals, being virtually unstoppable as the Netherlands took a big step towards qualification for  EHF EURO 2024, tying Croatia in the standings, with four points.

For the guests, goalkeeper Dominik Kuzmanovic had an outstanding evening, with a 47% saving efficiency, but it was not enough for Croatia, who had an attacking efficiency of 44%.

GROUP 6

Georgia vs Lithuania 32:18 (17:7)

Lithuania found their bid to return for a second consecutive EHF EURO quashed by an otherworldly performance displayed by Georgia.

After 23 minutes, Zurab Tsintadze, Georgia’s goalkeeper, had a 60% saving efficiency, stopping seven shots, as his team ran away with the game. At the break, the hosts boasted a 17:7 advantage, which proved to be unassailable, as Lithuania’s defence faltered.

With their most experienced player, Aidenas Malasinskas, scoring only twice from six attempts, Lithuania had little chance to take something out of the game. All as Georgia went on and secured one of the biggest wins in their history, 32:18, making a challenge for their maiden berth at the EHF EURO.

GROUP 8

Poland vs France 28:38 (11:22)

Nearly two months ago, Poland hosted France in the opener of the World Championship and the setting provided a close match, with France taking a narrow 26:24 win.

This time around, much had changed, with Poland changing coaches, as assistant Bartosz Jurecki had replaced head coach Patryk Rombel after a disappointing outing in the tournament.

But Poland had little to show against the reigning Olympic champions this time around, conceding a huge loss. With 14 outfield players getting their names on the scoresheet, led by left wing Dylan Nahi with 10 goals, France clinched a huge 38:28 win and are now virtually through to the final tournament in Germany.