A successful Tuesday for Les Rouge et Bleu
On Tuesday, a number of Paris Saint-Germain handball players took to the court in Croatia, Denmark and Norway to play for their national teams in the first round of the 2025 World Cup. They all won.
Hungary - France: 30-37
Inspirational since the start of the campaign, France confirmed their strong form while once again also adding a touch of style. Our three players were on hand to do their part: Elohim Prandi, Mathieu Grébille (two goals) and Luka Karabatic (one goal) all added to a well-oiled team. With three wins from as many games in the first round, Les Bleus are dominating second-phase Group II ahead of their clash with clubmates Luc Steins and Dani Baijens' Netherlands on Thursday.
Qatar - Netherlands: 37-38
The Dutch were in for a real treat in their clash with Qatar. In a clash packed with goals (75 in total), the Netherlands snatched victory in the dying moments thanks to Niels Versteijnen. Prior to this decisive goal, Luc and Dani had both scored with a very high level of efficiency: 7 from 7 and 9 from 10 respectively. The Oranje now trail Les Bleus by two points in Group II.
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Poland - Algeria: 38-32
Already out of contention, Poland were playing their first match of the President's Cup. Despite the absence of Kamil Syprzak, they defended their position as favourites by overcoming Algeria. Pavel Paterek put in a fine attacking display, shooting 6 from 6 in front of the Algerian goal. The Poles are currently top of this consolation group.
Denmark - Germany: 40-30
It was another lively encounter between two giants of world handball, with Jacob Holm's Denmark running out winners while the Parisian stayed in the stands. Not content with simply defeating one of the tournament favourites, the Scandinavians put on an attacking show, scoring no fewer than 40 times. The win means they go into the second round with maximum points, and two more than their opponents on the day.
Fixture list for Wednesday 22 January:
- Sweden (Andreas Palicka) - Portugal, 18:00
- Norway (Kent Robin Tonnesen) - Spain (Ferran Sole Sala), 20:30
- Egypt (Yahiar Omar) - Iceland, 20:30
(Credits: IHF)