Unbeaten Spain seal win against Germany to clinch semi-finals berth

Reigning European champions Spain extended their winning run to six games at the 2023 IHF Men’s Youth World Championship, sealing their place in the semi-finals after a dominating win against Germany (32:28).
 
Quarter-final

• Spain vs Germany 32:28 (16:12)

 
In the first quarter-final of the 2023 IHF Men’s Youth World Championship, Egypt proved that everything is possible in handball and came back from three goals down in only 59 seconds. It seems counterintuitive to try and prove it otherwise, but the second quarter-final in Varaždin did show another layer of the sport.
 
It took only two minutes and 32 seconds. Still, Spain’s 4:0 unanswered run in that period proved decisive in their clash against Germany, as a 6:6 deadlock was immediately broken, and the reigning European champions created a four-goal gap (10:6), which they managed expertly throughout the whole game.
 
It might be quite difficult to pinpoint exactly Spain’s strength. Still, it all boiled down to their excellent depth and cohesion, a team playing like a well-oiled machine, with players chiming in all the time and delivering some excellent performances, which, in turn, apply more and more pressure on the opponent.
 
The fact that Spain had the seventh-best attack in the competition after the main round was completed and their top scorer, line player Victor Romero Holguin was only the 15th-best scorer at Croatia 2023, spoke volumes, and this was exactly the case here, albeit with a twist, with the team carried by the back line.
 
In the first half, Ferran Castillo Oliveras and Djordje Cikusa I Jelicic were Spain’s top scorers, combining for seven of the team’s 16 goals, with the reigning European champions entering the break with the same four-goal lead created earlier (16:12). This important gap meant that Germany were in dire need of improvement.
 
Yet that improvement never came, especially after Germany’s efficiency took hit after hit, as Spain’s Alvaro Perez Mendez saved three shots in one-on-one situations in the first 10 minutes of the second half. With a strong backing in defence, Spain thrived in attack through Castillo Oliveras and Cikusa I Jelicic, who scored three of the first five goals in the second half, opening a six-goal lead (21:15).
 
While Germany tried it their all, as back Ben Connar Battermann was immense from the 9-metre line, Spain still played it cool, even when they were under pressure, with Perez Mendez, the hummel Player of the Match, who saved 13 shots for a 32% saving efficiency, making the right saves at precisely the right moments to relief some of Germany’s momentum.
 
Eventually, Spain’s 4:0 run, which first tilted the balance, was the pivotal moment of the match and helped the European champions seal the deal, as Spain clinched their sixth win in a row at Croatia 2023 (32:28), and probably the most important one as of yet, a win which enabled them to continue dreaming about the trophy.
 
Spain made it to the semi-finals of the IHF Men’s Youth World Championship for the fifth time in history, continuing their quest for the first trophy, having won two of the four semi-finals they had previously played in.
 
On Friday, the reigning European champions will either face hosts Croatia or Norway in what projects to be a fiery clash in Varaždin, with everything on the line. On the other side, after making the final in the last edition, Germany will have to feature in the Placement Matches 5-8, facing the team conceding a loss between Croatia and Norway.
 
hummel Player of the Match: Alvaro Perez Mendez (Spain)

Photo: Croatia 2023/Kolektiff images