The Blues begin their main round on Thursday against Croatia, who finished first in Group B ahead of Austria and Spain. A victory would already put France in a good position to reach the semi-finals.
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After a hotly contested preliminary round against the Germans and the Swiss, Guillaume Gille’s France faces Croatia, Thursday January 18 in Cologne, for its entry into the main round of Euro 2024 handball. Placed in a group within their reach despite the presence of the surprising Hungary – which has not reached the semi-finals of a major tournament since the 2021 Olympics2 – the Blues are looking for consistency after a sluggish draw against Switzerland (26-26) and a reassuring success against the host country, Germany (33-30).
Croatia generally dominated its group with big successes against Spain (39-29) and Romania (31-25). The only downside for the Croats was the draw conceded against Austria (28-28) which deprived them of a perfect first round on the scoreboard. If successful, Dika Mem’s teammates could get a good head start in the race for qualification, before returning to Iceland on Saturday.
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