The German handball team started the European Championship it organized with a show of strength, both on the field, after defeating Switzerland 27:14, and in the stands, where 53,586 spectators gathered to watch the German team's debut.
A value that made it possible to reach the world record for participation in a handball game, which had been set a few hours earlier in the meeting between France and Macedonia at the same venue, the MERKUR Spiel-Arena in Düsseldorf.
While over 50,000 tickets were sold on the opening day last September, there was no doubt that the attendance record would be achieved, but further questions arose about the German team's performance. Especially after the last-minute failures of front player Marian Michalczik and winger Patrick Groetzki, two key figures in the plans of the German coach, Icelander Alfred Gislason.
There is no doubt that goalkeeper Andy Wolff is responsible for wanting, with the stroke of a pen, to repeat in front of his audience the outstanding performance that led Germany to the continental title in Poland in 2016. This is proven by the eight interventions that Wolff, who at times made more than 66 percent of the saves, made in a first half in which the German goalkeeper became an almost insurmountable wall for the Swiss players.
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Stops and more stops that condemned the Swiss team to score just one goal between the seventh and the nineteenth minutes, which Germany did not waste to finally end the competition with a partial 7-1, giving the locals a lead of six goals (9:3). ) on the scoreboard. But the German team not only has a sensational goalkeeper, but also has one of the most talented players on the current scene in central defender Juri Knorr.
The German player, who came through Barça's youth system during his training, showed that he is not only a great passer but also a ruthless goalscorer, as demonstrated by the six goals with which he finished the game.
However, the German team did not need the best version of the second leg, on which the home team's medal chances are based, the linchpin Johannes Golla, who scored a single goal. And they didn't even have to score a goal against Switzerland (27-14), which compounded the offensive problems of the first half in the second half, in which the Swiss only scored six goals.
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