Slovenian dream continues with first main round win

GROUP I

Croatia vs Slovenia 18:26 (12:13)

• Slovenia earned their third win of the home EHF EURO after another powerful second half — in their first two victories, Slovenia trailed at half-time but, as they did against Croatia, they performed when it counted to hold the lead at the final buzzer
• the EURO co-hosts opened strong, scoring four unanswered goals before Croatia added their first, helped by goalkeeper Amra Pandzic saving the first two shots that came her way
• Croatia equalised for the first time at 7:7 in the 15th minute and from that point the teams took turns leading by one up to the break
• with her fifth goal, Slovenia captain Ana Gros opened the first two-goal gap since the first quarter, and her team continued to increase the distance from there. Gros’ seven goals at least temporarily took her to first place in the tournament’s top scorer ranking, with a total of 25 after four games
• Pandzic received the player of the match award thanks to her 12 saves

Slovenia join Croatia on the rise

They were the teams that ranked 16th — last position — at the last three editions of the Women's EHF EURO: Slovenia in 2020 and Croatia in 2018 and 2016. Slovenia had not reached the main round since 2004, while, before their bronze-medal win in 2020, Croatia had not since 2010.

Yet here they were, contesting the main round in Ljubljana in an atmospheric Arena Stozice — and delivering an exciting game.

While Croatia have cemented their legacy from 2020 by reaching this stage again, Slovenia have made it clear they are on the rise under the guidance of Dragan Adzic, who took the helm as head coach in 2021. Thus, the world of women’s handball has become more competitive, as these two sides join the fray of contenders to reach the final stages of major championships.

Slovenia back Barbara Lazovic: “It was really tough game. They are our neighbours and we know each other very well. After the third game, we felt a little bit tired and we knew that it would be hard, but we again showed our energy, our connections, and it was so nice to play in front of an almost full hall.”