Former national handball player Stefan Kretzschmar described the Olympic qualifier against Croatia as a “brutal challenge” for the DHB team. “There is an incredibly strong, talented Croatian team with a new coach, Dagur Sigurdsson. These are conditions that are extremely dangerous,” said the 52-year-old on the streaming service Dyn. Sigurdsson, once the German national coach, is an outstanding coach. The Icelander had already led Japan to the Olympics.
After the easy opening win against Algeria, the supposedly toughest challenge awaits the DHB selection on Saturday (2.30 p.m./ZDF and Dyn). At the home European Championships in January, national coach Alfred Gislason’s team lost significantly against the Balkan state. The final main round duel was meaningless at the time, but the defeat is still fresh in people’s minds. And Croatia impressed in their 35:29 win against Austria on Thursday.
Above all, the mix of young guns and veterans like backcourt player Domagoj Duvnjak from THW Kiel is causing the sports director of Bundesliga club Füchse Berlin a bit of concern. “This game against Croatia will be really brutal for us. In my opinion, we are by no means favorites,” Kretzschmar continued.
At the end of the tournament, the DHB selection will meet Austria in their group of four on Sunday. Germany has to finish at least second to qualify for the Summer Games in Paris.
