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Goalkeeper Andreas Palicka in the quarter-finals against Qatar
Photo: MATHIAS BERGELD / imago images / Bildbyran
You actually only need two minutes to find out what makes the Swedish handball players so special at the World Cup in Egypt.
In the evening against Denmark (5.30 p.m.), the young selection could bring the world title back to Sweden for the first time in 22 years, in the country of the four-time world champion, who has recently experienced a long lull and in 2007 and 2013 did not even qualify for the World Cup has been.
The two-minute explanatory piece of the Swedish success occurs between the 20th and 22nd minute in the semifinals against France.
The Swedish handball players were far up and were 10: 8 ahead.
Suddenly the opponent captured the ball. Sometimes handball then goes very quickly, a supposedly comfortable lead turns into a close game in the next moment.
Michaël Guigou came free standing in front of the Swedish goal to the throw, but keeper Andreas Palicka pulled his left leg up and fought off.
Andreas Palicka, 34 years old, who has been with the Rhein-Neckar Löwen club since 2016, almost didn't even go to this World Cup.
At the end of October, the Swedish goalkeeper suffered an inner ligament injury in his right knee, and during the finals he kept saying that he was actually not one hundred percent fit.
And yet: Palicka is playing and he is apparently so fit that he is now one of the top keepers of this final round. Palicka has fended off a total of 35 percent of the opposing throws so far.
The save at the beginning of the 20th minute was one of eleven in the game against the French, one more spectacular than the other.
Sweden's Jim Gottfridsson from SG Flensburg-Handewitt told the Aftonbladet after the semi-finals about the goalkeeper and his rescue deeds: “I understand that the French were afraid of the goal.
I mean, there's a flying idiot standing in the gate with his leg up high.
Of course you are then in shock. "
One can assume that it was a lovable name for the goalkeeper, after all, Palicka is the cornerstone of the current success.
His saves and the prevented goals mean, in the best case scenario, goals for their own team in direct return: Let's stay in the 20th minute and the two minutes, which tell a lot about the Swedish selection.
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Man of the game against France: Goalkeeper Palicka
Photo: Petr David Josek / dpa
Shortly after Palicka's parade, a typical Swedish scene emerged.
The ball was played forward quickly over three stations, at the end of the counterattack Felix Claar took advantage of a gap in the surprised French back team.
Five seconds after Palicka's parade, Sweden extended their lead to 11: 8.
No other team attacks their opponents more often than Sweden at this World Cup - and no other team is so successful with their attacks.
Out of a total of 62 counter-attacks, 51 led to goals, which means a success rate of 82 percent.
In handball, counter-attacks are considered simple goals.
Not because they are particularly easy to achieve.
Rather, because they can be a simple (and, above all, useful) means of attack if you have a strong defensive player and fast and intelligent outside players, but few options in terms of attack.
Sweden's coach Glenn Solberg has been with the job for a year, he didn't have much time to rehearse things - so the variant was all the more obvious.
Prokop's dream comes true - but in Sweden
Christian Prokop was also impressed by this fast attacking game during his time as DHB head coach from 2017 to 2020.
He had been missing a leading hand in the back room that could direct the offensive.
But Prokop had a strong defense available and the fast speed game seemed the solution.
However, there was no big hit in the DHB selection under Prokop, and this also shows that this tactic does not necessarily lead to success.
A poor defensive performance, a poor result in attack, an overpowering opponent - the attacking game is already considered too simple-minded.
This is one of the reasons why the Swedish success is described as somewhat surprising.
The Swedish media, who had expected more success on the ski slopes in the winter sports months, wrote of a “miracle” and a “resurrection”.
Back to the 20th minute and the two minutes: France was back in attack after the Swedish goal to 11: 8.
The French selection is experienced, the two old masters Luc Abolo and Michaël Guigou alone have played more international matches in their careers (565 games) than the entire Swedish World Cup squad of 20 players (540; as of before the start of the World Cup).
But as experienced as the team was, as experienced and ripped off in the attack game - the French had still not broken through after almost a minute in the attack.
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Fast man on the left wing: Hampus Wanne (SG Flensburg-Handewitt) is the fourth best shooter of the tournament with 48 hits
Photo: Slavko Midzor / PIXSELL / imago images / Pixsell
The time game was getting closer and closer, the pressure to get to a conclusion quickly, it grew - and Sweden's Felix Claar already suspected what was about to happen.
The 24-year-old oriented himself from the defense towards the opposing half, he waited for the opponent's mistake and actually France lost the ball a moment later. As after the goalkeeper parade, it went quickly forward again and the pushed out Claar completed - again met Sweden with a counter-attack, after just 22 minutes the Scandinavians were leading 12: 8.
Especially this goal shows next to the defensive strength also the enormous game intelligence of the Swedes.
In the end, the team won surprisingly clearly with 32:26 against France.
Now the final is waiting against the actually overpowering Denmark, the current world and Olympic champion.
"We are definitely outsiders," says goalkeeper Palicka, but he also reminds us of what Sweden has achieved so far: "We can be proud of having created this opportunity." Sweden, that much is certain, is one of the bright spots for us this World Cup, which started so controversially because of the corona pandemic.
And which could end with a very big surprise.
Icon: The mirror
