The Blues did not come far from a small disaster. In danger in the second period, disrupted by very solid Romanians defensively, the French women's handball team provided the essentials in the last quarter of an hour and continues its series of victories to ideally launch the second phase of the Euro 2024 (30-25). With four points, Sébastien Gardillou's players sit at the top of their group before a first big match, against Montenegro, decisive in terms of the semi-finals.
But it was complicated. The match started with a big battle of goalkeepers, Laura Glauser and her counterpart Bianca Tamina Curment piling up the saves and launching a weak match in goals. The Frenchwoman was, however, the most consistent, well helped by her defense. Offensively, the Blues stammered with their handball, but were able to count on their winger Chloé Valentini to feed the scoreboard. At the last second, Orlane Kanor scored a final goal to give his team a three-goal lead before the break (12-9).
Laura Glauser's solid performance continued at the start of the second act, notably with a good save on a 7 m throw. The Romanians, however, remained in contact, taking advantage of the numerous two-minute penalties distributed to the French, before equalizing (16-16, 42nd). Sébastien Gardillou then threw the second goalkeeper, Hatadou Sako, into the arena. Two immediate stops later, the Blues opened up a new immediate gap, but the danger remained present.
The last ten minutes were very tense. A huge save from Hatadou Sako, followed by an opportunistic goal from Chloé Valentini six minutes from the end of the match, however, showed the superiority of the Blues, who were able to calmly confirm their victory. However, we will have to raise the level against Montenegro, otherwise we will not see the semi-finals.
