SWEDEN REPRESENTED THEMSELVES WELL AS THEY WON THE MEN’S EHF EURO 2022

Sweden returned to the top of the EHF EURO podium exactly 20 years after their team last raised the trophy as they defeated reigning champions Spain 27:26 in a dramatic final in the Budapest Handball Arena on Sunday.

Spain had won every game against Sweden since 2009 but the Scandinavian side finally ended that run after a tight 60 minutes in the Hungarian capital, with the decisive goal coming courtesy of a high-pressure post-buzzer penalty shot by Niclas Ekberg.

For Sweden, it is their fifth EHF EURO title — an extension of their own record in the competition. Spain also extended their own record — for the most silver medals at an EHF EURO, which now stands at five.

Sweden’s Norwegian coach Glenn Solberg said: “It is incredible what we have done and I am extremely proud of my team. We always kept on believing in ourselves. In the final, we played fantastic handball, especially in defence, I am very, very proud.”

On his pressure penalty, match-winner Ekberg said: “I did not think about anything when I was standing at the penalty line, but only on my way to the line. The rest of the team did all that they could for us to have this final chance, and I was just the one to execute it.

“You do not win a trophy by a single penalty shot, but it is teamwork. This penalty was the icing on the cake for us. We all deserve this trophy.”

Spanish coach Jordi Ribera said: “It was a tough, tight and competitive match. Sometimes we had problems to control our emotions but we tried to manage this very well, though we had problems in steals.

“We could not play many counter-attacks and could not get into the game, later it was better and we turned the match when we were two goals ahead. We had the chance to win the game in the last minute, but finally the match was turned around by Sweden again.”

The bronze medal match was also a thriller as Denmark came out on top in a topsy-turvy match against France that went to extra-time. The Danes won 35:32 to secure their first medal at a Men’s EHF EURO since winning silver in 2014.

Source: EHF