Denmark win locks up group II semi-final spots

Denmark’s 29:23 win against Norway in the last game on Sunday night took the reigning world champions to eight points on the table, while Sweden had won earlier and own the head-to-head record against the other teams that can equal their six points.

For both Denmark and Sweden it is the third time in four editions of the EHF EURO that they will play the medal round, with Sweden the defending title holders and Denmark the bronze medallists from 2022.

The victory for Denmark was clear long before the buzzer. It was Denmark’s 13th win over Norway in a total of 15 mutual clashes, with Norway’s last and only victory coming in 2008 on the home court.

GROUP II

Norway vs Denmark 23:29 (11:18)

• Norway scored the opening goal but that was the only time they had the lead, as Denmark made the most of outstanding defence and a 45 per cent save rate from goalkeeper Emil Nielsen through the first half to score fast counter attacks
• with a possession rate of 34 per cent to Norway’s 66 per cent through much of the first half, Denmark spent hardly any time in positional attack, while forcing Norway to almost 100 more passes in that period
• by the 20th minute, Denmark already led by eight, 13:5, and they would have held that margin to the break but for a buzzer-beater from Norway back Sander Sagosen
• while Denmark were simply perfect overall, the most outstanding factor were Nielsen’s saves, as the keeper racked up 15 stops at a rate of 39.5 per cent to earn the Grundfos Player of the Match award
• wing Hans Lindberg, who was part of Denmark’s two EHF EURO title wins in 2008 and 2012 and playing his 296th international match, scored five goals from five shots to hit 800 in his career

Have Denmark found the EHF EURO recipe?

No doubt Denmark have perfected the World Championship recipe, with three straight world titles won in 2019, 2021 and 2023. The team have not lost a game at the World Championship since 2017, when they were eliminated by Hungary in the round of 16. Since then, they recorded a clean sweep of the 2019 and 2021 championships, and had an almost perfect record in 2023 except for one draw.

Denmark have not had such a record at the EHF EURO, although they lost only two games on the path to the bronze medal in 2022. The powerful, one-sided win over Norway on Sunday night confirms Denmark’s exceptional form at the EHF EURO 2024. Will this generation crack the EHF EURO recipe and take the nation’s first European title since 2012?

Photos © Kolektiff Images