Sport Handball-EM
The “ambitious and motivated” generation is becoming an important factor for Germany
Status: 14.01.2024 | Reading time: 4 minutes
Second major tournament within six months: Renars Uscins, one of four U21 world champions
What: REUTERS
Second win in the second game. Germany’s handball players reach the main round of the home European Championship before the showdown against France. Above all, the healthy mix of talent and veterans within the team seems to inspire Gislason’s team.
One of the groundbreaking debates in the run-up to the home European Championship was that of squad balance. Federal coach Alfred Gislason named four U21 world champions, who triumphed at the last major event in the summer of 2023 at the start of the “Decade of Handball” proclaimed by the association in German halls, in his selection. The personnel change demanded by several protagonists in the industry – such as Füchse managing director Bob Hanning – was already completed before the first home game and the world record crowd of 53,586 fans against Switzerland in Düsseldorf on Wednesday.
They demonstrated how important the youngsters are within the team in the second preliminary round game against North Macedonia on Sunday evening. In the clear victory, which resulted in the minimum goal of “reaching the main round” declared by the German Handball Federation (DHB), some of them showed that they are already an important factor in the top international level. Gislason said in the WELT interview before the European Championships that the age of the professionals did not play a role in the nomination of his squad and that only the previous performance of the handball players in their clubs was decisive. But the performance against North Macedonia may have confirmed to him that he had found a more than good mix of emerging talents and experienced veterans.
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“I am very satisfied with the performance across the board. It was also our goal to spread the load as much as possible. Not everything was great. But those who came off the bench all performed well,” praised Gislason: “The second guard is growing more and more. That is nice.”
Satisfied with the breath of fresh air in the squad: national coach Alfred Gislason (right) high-fives Renars Uscins after the game
Source: dpa/Sören Stache
Uscins and Späth inspire
Three of the U21 world champions had already played against Switzerland, and on Sunday Nils Lichtlein from Füchse Berlin also celebrated his European Championship premiere in his adopted hometown. Renars Uscins, captain of the young handball players last summer, stood out from the quartet. The 21-year-old not only represented Kai Häfner (34), who was missing in the right backfield due to the birth of his second child. He was also brave: First, the highly talented ball’s first shot bounced off the inside post, then he scored to make it 4:2 and gave the assist to director Juri Knorr for the 10:6 (16th). Finally, he also got a time penalty in the first half. “It is a huge privilege that I can play two major tournaments in my own country within six months,” said Uscins humbly: “I soak it all up, try to enjoy it and work on my development a little.”
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Lichtlein, MVP of the U21 World Cup last year and, like Uscins, only 21 years old, scored in the first action after coming on as a substitute (20th). And David Späth (21) was called into the German goal from the 22nd minute onwards to replace Andreas Wolff, who this time was not as outstanding as he was against Switzerland. Especially at the beginning of the second half, the man from the Rhein-Neckar Löwen was able to distinguish himself a few times and repeatedly caused the volume in the hall to rise with his gestures. “Anyone who knows me knows that I am an emotional goalkeeper. I’m just happy and I expressed it. I was happy that I got into the game well and was able to help the team. “That I came into play, even in a difficult phase,” he said later.
Speaker: David Späth made numerous saves in the German goal
Quelle: Getty Images/Lars Baron
Justus Fischer, the youngest in the squad at 20, gained important playing time, as he did against Switzerland. The “ambitious and motivated” generation became an important factor for Germany’s handball players because established players like captain Johannes Golla were able to take breaks – a benefit that should not be underestimated for the rest of the tournament, which at best will result in the first medal win since Olympic bronze in 2016 should.
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The real test, however, awaits Gislason’s men in the capital on Tuesday (8.30 p.m., ARD/Dyn): Then they will face the world-class team from France in the Berlin Arena, one of the big favorites to win the title, but which is in the 26:26 against Switzerland immediately before the German appearance was unusually difficult. Häfner is also scheduled to take part in the showdown in the preliminary round: “If he comes back, he can play dad for us again,” said backcourt shooter Martin Hanne about the oldest German player at the weekend.
