The Blues won their fourth European champion title, ten years after the last, thanks to their extremely close victory in overtime (33-31) against the Danish world champions on Sunday.
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Ten years later, here are the Blues again on the roof of Europe. The reigning Olympic champions won the fourth European title in their history on Sunday January 28, beating Denmark in the final (33-31). Despite numerous saves from the opposing goalkeeper, Emil Nielsen, the good French defense allowed Guillaume Gille’s men to win against the world champions. A good omen six months before the Paris Olympic Games, while the French women’s team won the world title in December.
Hugs and even tears for Samir Bellahcene. The goalkeeper opens his list of achievements with the most difficult title to win in international handball. These scenes of joy are at the height of the deliverance for the Blues, at the end of a bitter fight. In front of the press, on the eve of the match, the two teams, who know each other by heart from meeting each other in the final, declared that they were expecting a close match, and it was. Neck and neck in the score, the Tricolores never had more than two goals in advance, while the Danes managed to take three, but without breaking away further. One of the keys to the match then lay in the ability of the goalkeepers to stop the opposing shots, and on this point, the Danes started with an important advantage: two very experienced and confident goalkeepers in this Euro, with 40% saves. for Emil Nielsen and 33% for Niklas Landin.
The first was established and his success did not escape him. Sparkling, he quickly disgusted the Blues, with already six saves in 15 minutes, while Samir Bellahcene, significantly less experienced, only made his first save in the 19th minute. Despite the offensive ineffectiveness symbolized by the 0/4 of their top scorer, Dika Mem, a rigorous defense still allowed Guillaume Gille’s men to stay in contact with the Danes (14-14) at the break.
Wear and tear and mental
The French continued to chase the score in the second half, especially as the excellent Nielsen was replaced by the no less excellent Niklas Landin, author of several decisive saves. But as they have shown since the start of the tournament, the French have resources and have equalized once again thirty seconds from the end of regulation time, through Ludovic Fabregas. The final direct free throw obtained on the gong by Denmark will not change anything. It’s not Elohim Prandi who wants and Mikkel Hansen, more eccentric, saw his attempt blocked by the French wall.
With the same score as against Sweden at the end of regulation time (27-27), the two teams went to overtime, and once again, the Blues wore down their opponents. Elohim Prandi, confident after his miraculous free throw in the semi-finals, Dika Mem, who scored his only two goals of the match beyond the 65th minute, and “Zamir” Bellahcene, as he is called by the German announcer , were decisive in giving victory to theirs.
France, which had until then never lost in the final of the Euro in the first three it had played (2006, 2010 and 2014), remains on its momentum. The Blues won a fourth European title and thus equaled Sweden’s record. They will attack the Paris Olympic Games crowned with the titles of reigning Olympic champions and European champions.