[ad_1]
KOLDING / OSLO (VG) (Croatia v Norway 25–36) Croatia was the big surprise at the European Championship, but against Norway there was an abrupt stop.
Norway continues to run over opponents and is ready for the European Championship semi-finals after a win against the sensational team Croatia, who had won four of the four games before the meeting with the Norwegian handball girls.
– It is absolutely beautiful and very delicious. That was exactly what we wanted for the match and of course before the championship, so it was really nice, says national team captain Stine Bredal Oftedal about the ticket to the semi-finals.
For the first time in several years, Norway faced a team called top with no injured players. Guardian Silje Solberg returned to the Norwegian team after being out with the corona virus, but still the Norwegian girls had it tough for a while against the hardworking Croats.
Norway opened well and gained a four-goal opening lead after, among other things, captain Oftedal’s impressive play, but the last half of the first half was not so impressive. After mistakes in both defense and attack, Croatia came close again and at the break it was just 15-14 to Norway.
FIGHT: Line player Heidi Løke scores in the match against Croatia. Photo: Bjørn Steinar Delebekk / VG
also read
Handball fever in Croatia: I received the star salute from Luka Modrić
– I think it was good that we knew a little. They are good at slowing down. “We had to work to get out of it and I think we do it in a very good way,” Oftedal says of the messy first half.
– We talked about a couple of things during the break and it helped us a bit. We increase the pace and are more efficient on arrival. It turned out very well, he adds.
After the break, Norway returned to their usual level and then Croatia couldn’t keep up. The handball girls sped up and drove away early. After ten minutes, Norway had regained a four-goal lead.
And then Norway didn’t look back. The lead increased and increased throughout the round and ended in the end with a top 36-25 victory.
– It’s great to be the first team to be ready for the semi-finals. We are very happy with it and it is a lot of fun. There was no question we wanted this, so it’s silly, says Nora Mørk.
Thus, the handball girls are prepared for the semifinal on Friday after a victory against the Netherlands and now Croatia in the main round.
In practice, Norway only needed one point to secure a place in the semi-finals.
Croatia and Germany fight for the second ticket of the Norwegian group. Germany got off to a good start in the main round when they beat Hungary in their first match. They face the Netherlands on Monday and Croatia on Tuesday.
Norway’s last game in the main round is against Hungary on Tuesday.
Here you can see how Croatia has impressed at the European Championships:
