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Bregenz finals rerun

The Scandinavians have been waiting for a rematch for two years. Germany won by 28-25 in the first match, but Sweden improved their game immensely since, especially in the defensive middle

ÖHB

Before the tournament, you could see Denmark and Germany in the finals, but it won't happen. The Swedish players prevented it and deserved to rerun the EC finals in Bergenz from two years ago. To remind you, Germany celebrated after overtime then, but they were only a few seconds away from a defeat. Their player basically scored from a blind spot, and turned the momentum before the additional 10 minutes. Sweden fell apart mentally, disappeared from the court, and the Germans knew how to use that very well. 

- I hope we'll meet Germany in the final; we've been waiting for that for two years - the right wing Mork said right after the semifinals, he was one of the best Swedish players in that match. 

They were hoping to play this match last year, but Croatia stopped them in the WC quarterfinals then. Now, there are no more obstacles, Germany are their last opponent in this competition. The stakes probably couldn't be higher - as much as the Olympics and WC are better appreciated than EC, it's a fact that the most difficult competition is playing for the Old Continent champion title, it's a competition of the handball elite. Both teams proved they definitely belong here with their semifinal matches.

ÖHB

- I'm thrilled we played our best in a match that important. Especially defense that looked better in the middle than in the previous matches, and that helped the goalie Thulin have a great performance - coach Karlsson summed up.

The "fault" definitely lies with the Danes for them not seeing the new finals. Swedish defense forced their opponent to 34 back position shots, Thulin saved 13 of those, 19 altogether. Whenever he had to, he was there, so no wonder he was made the semifinals MVP. Thulin was great in the first match against the Germans, too, when Sweden were in the lead for most of the match, but ended up being defeated with the goal difference too high, perhaps, by three. So no doubt that their coach is optimistic before the finals:

- We've played with them here and in Scandinavian Open, matches that were very evened out. They're a top team physically, but we're aware we have our chances. I actually think we'll play a match even more intense than the previous ones.

Coach Karlsson made that statement right after the semifinals, and if he waited for a few hours, maybe his optimism wouldn't be that big. What the Germans showed against Spain was incredibly impressive. The Fury were in shock from the beginning, Martinez called for a time-out in the third minute already, but nothing could help. Baur's team looked too powerful, the difference could have been even bigger than +6 if they hadn't relaxed too much later on.

- We were really focused and dedicated to our game. We had a great rhythm, but Spain did a big chunk of our job with their constant mistakes - Baur was honest.

Martinez did a major mistake by changing the two defense-offense players, which simply cannot be done against a team with an excellent semi-counter like the Germans. The Spaniards couldn't change that fast and prevent the opponent, so the Germans' terrifying stat of 80% field goal isn't surprising - there was no Spanish defense in that match. Of course, the German experts don't expect nothing like that in the finals today, it will be a completely different story.

- It will be a terrifying battle. We could see how the Swedes can be calm in crucial moments in this competition so far. That's why we'll need to play similar to how we played against Spain if we want to win - Baur is aware.

Sweden were in the lead for most of the match in the first match they played, but couldn't keep it till the end. Konradsson lacked freshness, and they couldn't play a good offense without him. But, as the tournament goes on, that problem seems to be getting smaller. Of course, the key is in the transition, and that functions greatly through Mork, and Hallen isn't far behind. The only thing they have to improve now compared to the first match is guarding the pivot. Like the coach Karlsson said, it looked a lot better against the Danes, and if they can do it against the Germans, no doubt that the Swedes can become real candidates for the gold, despite the fact that the three starting players from the last year's WC are not here. The German alliance president Bauer is aware of the danger, and he says:

- No matter how we play, I congratulate the players, coaches and other staff already, for the great success they achieved. We get silver at least here, and the U18 girls get silver in Macedonia, so we can be happy that the German teams don't have to worry about their future.