There was no surprise on Thursday in Debrecen’s second match. Denmark were favourites from start until the end, and boosted with confidence now await a match against Slovenia.
Montenegro gave their best on the court and even though they couldn’t keep up with the current world champions, they celebrated every goal with a smile.
GROUP A
Denmark vs Montenegro 30:21 (18:10)
- Denmark showed their superiority already in the first half, which was marked by Mikkel Hansen’s milestone - 1,200 international goals in 233 matches
- Branko Vujovic kept Montenegro’s engine going, netting eight times and even returning to the court after a small injury
- this is Denmark’s third EHF EURO win over Montenegro
- in round 2 Denmark will face Slovenia in what could be an important match for first position in the group, while Montenegro will seek their second ever EHF EURO win against North Macedonia
- the Grundfos Player of the Match was Denmark’s goalkeeper Niklas Landin
Big milestone reached
Mikkel Hansen is one of the most recognisable handball players and one of the main links in Denmark’s play, and since making his national team debut he has not missed any EHF EURO.
The three-time All-star left back scored a penalty throw to give Denmark the lead at 14:9 – his 1,200th international goal in 233 matches played. He ended the game with 223 EHF EURO goals, a remarkable total which will surely increase in the coming matches.
"I’m very satisfied with the first half, we had good defence. In second we didn’t play well, made too many mistakes. Montenegro played a very good match after a difficult last 10 days," commented Denmark coach Nikolaj Jacobsen.
"This was my first EHF EURO match. It felt good to play against a great team like Denmark. This was a hard match for us, we missed our head coach and many players. We gave our heart on the court, however we could not compete with them," said Montenegro centre back Vasilje Kaludjerovic.