Croatia Fall 34-32 To France, Face Tough Road To Euro Handball Semifinals

Following a 31-25 victory over Romania on Tuesday, the Croatian handball team fell 34-32 against France in “Main Round” action at the European Championship.

Croatia now sit in fifth place in Group I of the Main Round, two points out of a spot in the semifinals. In order to reach the semis, Croatia must win out and hope that Austria loses (or tie, depending on goal differential). France currently tops the table, with Austria one point behind them in second place. Austria are set to face Germany, France, and Iceland, and will likely drop a point or two in one of these matches.

Meanwhile, Croatia will play Hungary, Iceland, and Germany to conclude Main Round play — three very winnable matchups. With tough matches against France and Austria out of the way, you’d imagine that Croatia’s fate is still in their hands going forward.

In their 34-32 loss to France, Zvonimir Srna led Croatia with six goals on an impressive 86% shooting percentage, followed by four goals from Igor Karačić, Luka Lovre Klarica, Marin Jelenić, and Mateo Maraš. Goalie Dominik Kuzmanović finished the game with 13 saves and a 41.9% save percentage.

After crushing Spain to start their Euro campaign, Croatia was seemingly ready to roll through the entire tournament. However, with a lot of adversity in their way, a trip to the semifinals will be no easy task for the boys.