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January 26, 2025In the last match of the 2025 IHF Men’s World Championship hosted in the Jyske Bank Boxen in Herning, Germany took their biggest win of the competition, as they defeated Tunisia by 12 goals, 31:19.
MAIN ROUND GROUP I
Germany vs Tunisia 31:19 (18:8)
Germany’s coach Alfred Gislason had limited options in this game. While Juri Knorr and Rune Dahmke are still sidelined with a flu and Franz Semper will miss the rest of the competition due to an injury, the European side had to make do with just 14 players in the roster against Tunisia. Some of them, such as Andreas Wolff, Renars Uscins, Johannes Golla, who earned his 100th cap under the national team shirt, and Julian Köster were completely rested and stayed on the bench throughout the entire game, but still the match was very one-sided, especially in the first half.
Since the beginning, Gislason’s team started to score one goal after another, opening up a 8:3 lead 10 minutes into the match. Between the 11th and the 25th minutes, the Paris 2024 Olympic Games runners-up enjoyed a 7:0 run, extending their lead to 15:4. After 20 minutes, Marko Grgic, who netted six goals in the first half, had more goals on his account than the entire Tunisian team. And while Tunisia doubled their tally in the last six minutes of the half, Germany had a double-digit advantage at the break, leaving Tunisia with a mountain to climb.
Germany’s goalkeeper, David Späth, made 12 saves in the first half, and he continued to shine between the posts after the break, ending the game with 21 saves and a 53% save rate. His teammates somewhat slowed down in attack in the second half, so the match became more balanced, but the unstoppable Grgic continued to make the difference, scoring 11 times in this encounter.
A confident victory should further boost Germany’s confidence ahead of the quarter-final match, which they will play in Baerum, Norway, against Portugal or Brazil – the Group III winners – on Wednesday. Meanwhile Tunisia leave the 2025 IHF Men’s World Championship with just one win six matches, and they will finish between the 22nd and 24th places.
hummel Player of the Match: David Späth (Germany)