Sweden overthrow Portugal to put semi-finals in sight

GROUP II

Sweden vs Portugal 40:33 (19:15)

• Sweden powered to the crucial win after leading from late in the first half on. With a six-goal lead as the final 10 minutes began, the Scandinavian side were on track for their second victory in the main round
• the teams were on level footing for almost 25 minutes, with the difference made by Sweden’s goalkeepers: some early saves from Andreas Palicka helped Sweden open a narrow gap initially, before Tobias Thulin came in late in opening period and recorded a 50 per cent rate to pave the way for the half-time lead
• the first two-goal gap after the early minutes came at 16:14 five minutes before half-time, and after the break, and by the 41st minute, Sweden had pulled ahead to a seven-goal difference at 26:19
• as is standard for Portugal, their attack was spearheaded by a superb outing from the Costa brothers Francisco and Martim, who combined for 14 goals, while line player Luís Frade netted seven
• in what was his 150th international match for Sweden, MVP of the EHF EURO 2022 Jim Gottfridsson scored three goals from three attempts

Sweden await Denmark’s result

The two semi-final places from group II could be locked up on Sunday night, with the first box ticked in that regard: Sweden’s victory. The defending title holders’ win put them on six points on the table, where they now sit two ahead of Portugal and at least temporarily level on points with Denmark, who play Norway in the third match of the day.

If Denmark defeat Norway, then Sweden and Denmark will be through to the semi-finals, as even though Portugal and Slovenia could also still reach six points, Sweden beat both sides and therefore own the head-to-head record and have the upper hand in case of a three-way tie.

Photos © Kolektiff Images