Alfred Gislason smiled at the thought of the explosive family duel and then addressed words of warning to his Icelandic relatives.
“My father, my brothers and my uncles will all be sitting in the stands. I’m very excited whether in the German jersey or the Icelandic one. I would take it very personally this time,” said the national coach of the German handball players with a wink and spoke of a very special encounter.
In the first main round game of the European Championship, the 64-year-old has to play against his home country with the DHB selection – and faces an interesting challenge. “I will sing both national anthems, even if it will be difficult,” Gislason announced before the duel this Thursday (8.30 p.m./ZDF and Dyn) in Cologne.
Gislason: I love this team
After the 30:33 win against France at the end of the European Championship preliminary round in Berlin, Gislason left no doubt about who his sporting heart beats for. “I will do everything to win this game. I may be Icelandic, but I work with the German team and love this team,” assured the coach and reiterated: “Maybe I’m selfish there, but also among friends or in the world I always want to win family.”
And victory is also a must. Not only Iceland, but also Austria, Hungary and Croatia have to be defeated. Otherwise the medal mission threatens to fail before the semi-finals. Only the best two teams in each group of six qualify for the semi-finals. “Now we have four finals,” said Gislason, describing the delicate starting position.
DHB sports director Axel Kromer spoke of tricky but solvable tasks. The team didn’t achieve their goal against France, but they still had “enough self-confidence.”
Not huge mistakes, but small flaws
The first tournament defeat in a duel with the Olympic champion and record world champion on Tuesday evening in Berlin only dampened the mood in the team for a short time. “The defeat hurts and leaves a scratch,” said playmaker Juri Knorr. “But we’re not out yet and we continue to believe in ourselves. Everything is still possible. We’ll push ourselves and enjoy the tournament until the end.”
The self-sacrificing fight against the title candidate was a source of encouragement, all the players reiterated like a prayer wheel. “If we continue to show our courage in the coming games, we have every chance of reaching the semi-finals,” explained goalkeeper Andreas Wolff.
The DHB selection boarded the train to Cologne on Wednesday morning with a good feeling. The test of strength against the star ensemble from France also made clear what distinguishes Germany from a top team. “In crunch time we have to play a little more fluidly in attack,” demanded right winger Timo Kastening.
Captain Johannes Golla recognized “no huge mistakes” in the German game, but “timing issues and slight technical imperfections” that were crucial to the game.
Iceland’s backcourt row “absolutely world class”
The German squad looked tired, especially in the final phase. And the stress increases, because in Cologne things continue every two days. The start against the Northmen promises a thrilling handball atmosphere.
“We can assume that there are a few thousand Icelanders. It will be a super intense game. They are all experienced in the Champions League,” said Kastening about the squad, which is full of current and former Bundesliga professionals.
Knorr even described Iceland’s backcourt as “absolutely world-class”. The DHB team won one of the two duels last year and the Icelanders triumphed once.
Finals in the Mecca of handball
After the main round opener against Iceland, seemingly solvable tasks await with Austria and Hungary. The decisive duel for the semi-final ticket could be next Wednesday’s game against Croatia.
“It will be a final if we do our jobs well until then. And then of course all the emotions that are still there will be put on the floor,” announced left winger Rune Dahmke.
All four main round games start at 8:30 p.m. and can be seen on ARD or ZDF. Against France, the DHB selection drew an average of 7.968 million people in front of the screen. In Cologne’s Lanxess Arena, the “Mecca of handball”, as Kastening put it, up to 20,000 fans want to bring a German cauldron to the boil.
The anticipation in the German team is huge, the hope of a medal is still high despite the small setback – and Kastening’s appeal to his teammates is clear: “Off to Cologne and win.”
