Final hopes were shattered for these four teams on Quarter-Final day, but with Olympic Games qualification at stake, there was little time for nursing wounds. 

Denmark defeated Slovenia on the first day of placement matches yesterday to book a spot in the 5/6 match against the victors of the Croatia-Germany game: Croatia. 

Germany and Slovenia will take to the court to fight for the all-important seventh spot, which is the lowest-ranked position that proceeds directly to the Olympic qualification tournament. 

Germany-Slovenia 16:30, Lusail Multipurpose Hall

Slovenia and Germany face each other in the most important match of the night with a ticket to the Olympic qualification tournament at stake. 

After two disappointing performances from Germany – first their loss in the Quarter-Final against Qatar to knock the European side out of the Finals race, then a less-than-perfect game against Croatia – the wild card team will need to turn their form around if they hope to defeat speedy Slovenia.

Slovenia and Denmark played a fast-paced, high-scoring game in their first placement match – a style that suited both sides. 

Led by the top scorer of tournament, Dragan Gajic, Slovenia favour fast breaks over set play, which means Germany need to be ready to run. 

Gajic once again netted an impressive number of goals yesterday, with a total of 12 to his name. 

Germany’s defence and goalkeeping will therefore prove a key factor in whether they can contain Slovenia, take the win, and book their spot in the Rio 2016 qualification tournament. 

Croatia-Denmark 19:15, Lusail Multipurpose Hall

Both Croatia and Denmark suffered big disappointments in their Quarter-Finals, coming unbearably close to taking a Semi-Final spot, with their losses only occurring very late in the game.

Croatia lost by two against Poland, but the pain for Denmark was undeniably greater as they only went down in the dying seconds of the match thanks to a devastating goal from Spain. 

Their wins yesterday were therefore not such a big surprise as both are likely determined to finish as strongly as they can – and they already have, with a spot in the Olympic qualification tournament already booked with their respective victories yesterday.

For Denmark, Lasse Svan was unstoppable against Slovenia, scoring 13 goals from 13 shots to record 100% efficiency. 

Croatia’s key player was Mirko Alilovic, who had a great game to give the German shooters a big headache.