Hungary seal crucial win against Slovenia, Islamic Republic of Iran, North Macedonia and Brazil clinch main round berths

Hungary and Slovenia were already through to the main round in Group B, but the mutual game was crucial for their future, as the winner started the main round with two points. After a nip-and-tuck game, with plenty of lead changes, Hungary emerged with the win (29:25).
 
The Islamic Republic of Iran also sealed a place between the top 16 teams at Croatia 2023, staying unbeaten for the third match in a row, with a 46:24 win over Burundi, as they now have three points and could even secure the first place in Group H, provided Sweden do not win against the Faroe Islands in the last match.
 
Before the last game of Group F, North Macedonia secured their main round berth with the second win in a row (27:21) against Georgia, with Norway and Montenegro fighting for the other qualifying spot.
 
Last but not least, Brazil also made it to the main round, with a 28:22 over Bahrain, which made sure that the South American side will have their best finish at the IHF Men’s Youth World Championship since 2015.
 

• Group B

Hungary vs Slovenia 29:25(14:14)
 
It was a mix of turnovers, great defence from their opponents and a lethargic start which hampered Hungary in the first minutes of the deciding clash against Slovenia, with the winners not only securing the first place in Group B of the preliminary round at Croatia 2023 but also starting the main round with two points.
 
Therefore, Hungary needed some time to get their engines truly going, as Slovenia found the right answers for the questions asked, especially with backs Mlivić Malik and Lun Ključanin being somewhat unstoppable in attack by the Hungary defence.
 
Yet once goalkeeper László Lovistyek started to get in the groove for Hungary and centre back Kristóf Csörgő got his groove back and settled in, the tides were turned. For nine minutes and 36 seconds, Slovenia failed to score, enabling Hungary to go on a 7:0 unanswered run, which turned the game on its head.
 
Another blow was delivered to Slovenia in the 21st minute, when defensive lynchpin Lucijan Korošec saw a red card for a foul, with Hungary in total control, leading by three goals (13:10) after Csörgő and right wing Roland Terjék combined for seven goals, more than half of what Hungary had mustered until then.
 
But Slovenia were no pushovers and they shrugged off that scoreless stint to come back into the game and give themselves a fighting chance, with Malik, Ključanin and Nejc Hriberšek each scoring three goals to tie the game (14:14) at the break.
 
Another good start in the second half from Slovenia put Hungary under pressure. Still, it was nothing they could not handle, with Csörgő in excellent form, finishing the match with seven goals, despite Slovenia’s decision to change the defensive system from a traditional 6-0 to a more aggressive 5-1.
 
That did not pay dividends, as Csörgő inspired Hungary to a 6:2 run, which proved to be absolutely pivotal in the end, with fellow back Tamás Kovács adding five goals to Hungary’s total, with some exquisite moves and dribbles. 
 
While Slovenia tried to mount a comeback, eventually it fell flat and Hungary sealed an important 29:25 win, but they still need to correct plenty of things if they are to challenge for the title or secure their first-ever medal at the IHF Men’s Youth World Championship.
 
Hungary will now start the main round with two points, a big advantage, as Croatia and Portugal will come from Group A into the main round group, which is played in Varaždin. On the other hand, Slovenia start the next phase on zero points and will need two wins to extend their chances of making it to the knockout round.
 
hummel Player of the Match: Kristóf Csörgő (Hungary)

• Group D

Brazil vs Bahrain 28:22 (14:13)

At the final buzzer, Brazil coach Giuliano Ramos jumped for joy and some of his players appeared to wipe away tears as the South American side confirmed their passage through to the main round with a win against Bahrain.

In what was a winner-takes-all clash, Bahrain now drop into the President’s Cup 17-32 rank competition, while Brazil move into the final 16 and have already recorded their best finish in an IHF Men’s Youth World Championship since 2015 when they finished inside the top 10.

While both teams had sequences of scoring runs throughout the first half, it was Brazil who held the impetus, going ahead 6:3 (12th minute) and 10:6 (21st), but the Asian side kept coming back.

It was not until a 3:0 run as the game entered the last 10 minutes that Ramos’ side finally got away (23:18, 51st minute) with a five-goal lead and in a messy end, Bahrain could only score four times in the final 10 minutes – as part of a total of just nine goals in the second period – highlighting the difference between these two who are now going in very opposite directions.

With no penalty shots awarded to them in the entire game, Brazil relied on their slick, fluid outfield play to register the goals, knowing that if they lost the ball, goalkeeper Guilherme Maia Cândido would be there to assist, which he evidenced thanks to a 47% save ratio, stopping nine of 19 attempts he faced.

hummel Player of the Match: Vinicius Bertoldo (Brazil)

 

 

 

• Group F

North Macedonia vs Georgia 27:21 (13:10)

Following a win against Georgia, North Macedonia finished the group stage with four points and secured a main round spot. Even if Montenegro beat Norway later today and three teams will be level on points, the North Macedonians will be certain to go through, as they have a +7 goal difference against Norway and Montenegro combined.

The match was not a walk in the park for the Balkan side, but they won thanks to a solid defence. Goalkeeper David Brestovac, the hero of the match against Montenegro the day before, was rested. Still, his colleague Ivan Galevski also did a good job, recording 11 saves and becoming hummel Player of the Match.

North Macedonia enjoyed a good start, opening an 8:3 lead midway through the first half. However, Georgia tried to make a comeback and reduced the gap to just three goals at the break, 10:13, as their goalkeeper Gigi Rukhadze stopped nine balls (45%) in the opening 30 minutes.

Sandro Darsania, the leader of Geogia's new generation, stood out in attack again, scoring almost half of his team's during the game, 9 out of 21. However, he had little support from his teammates, and Georgia had just a 48% shot efficiency and made 19 turnovers throughout the game.

North Macedonia's shot efficiency was not much better, 55%, but they were a dominant team after the restart. Five minutes from full-time, the Balkan team led 25:19, and the Georgians could hardly hope to avoid a third straight defeat. 

hummel Player of the Match: Ivan Galevski (North Macedonia)

• Group H

Islamic Republic of Iran vs Burundi 46:24 (24:13)

The fairytale of the Islamic Republic of Iran continued at the 10th IHF Men's Youth World Championship after beating Burundi in the last group match in Opatija. Majis Rahimizadeh's team confirmed their main round spot and are now eyeing Sweden and Faroe Islands clash to find out who is going with them and with how many points they will start the road to the quarter-finals.

After their third straight defeat at their maiden flagship competition, Burundi can be proud as they delivered their best performance at Croatia 2023. Burundi looked more serious on the court as Benin Ndayiragije was delivering some nice moves and couldn't miss in the first half, netting five times. 

Still, they were not able to keep up with aggressive Iran and experience the opponents brought from the 2022 AHF Men's Youth Handball Championship for more than 15 minutes. Mid-first half Iran made a 4-0 goal run and propelled to a 14:7 lead from which the African side couldn't recover. 

Even though Iran looked like they stepped on the break for a couple of moments, Amirhossein Karami did his job at full throttle, scoring 11 times in 30 minutes. However, as the clock passed the 45th minute, Iran were boosted with fresh energy.

They took the best out of Burundi's 34 turnovers and technical mistakes, made four consecutive goals and with Hossein Heidarian's seventh goal set the 20-goal lead (42:22). ''hummel Player of the Match'' Amirhossein Karami became the current top scorer of the competition, with his tally being 30 after three games.

Burundi improved their attacking efficiency from 37% they had in the first two games to 57%, but they are still the least efficient defence of the competition and will need to work on that in Presidents' Cup Group IV.

hummel Player of the Match: Amirhossein Karami (Islamic Republic of Iran)

Photos: Croatia 2023/Kolektiff images