Les Bleus secured their place in the main round of the competition by beating Ukraine on Saturday. Guillaume Gille's men accomplished their mission perfectly, their resounding 46-26 victory clinched with an attacking masterclass. Elohim Prandi, invaluable in directing play, turned in a solid four-goal performance.
Karl Konan shone in defence, while also participating in France's counter-attacks and providing an assist for Wallem Peleka, who scored again in this Euro after finding the net against the Czech Republic. Already qualified, Les Bleus will face Norway, who have also won their first two matches, in a decisive group final on Monday 19 January.
The Norwegians were once again effective in front of their home crowd, this time getting the better of the Czech Republic (29-25). New Paris recruit Simen Lyse contributed three goals to the win. Jonas Wille's men thus qualified for the main round of the Euro, as have France, whom they will face in a match to determine who tops the group on Monday at 20:30.
In a duel between Paris Saint-Germain teammates Sebastian Karlsson and Luc Steins, Sweden got the better of the Netherlands on Saturday (36-31). The Swedes, playing at home, got off to a perfect start in the competition but it was no walk in the park at the Malmö Arena. Sebastian scored two goals in the match. The Netherlands will have a chance to make up for it against Croatia on Monday (18:00), while Michael Apelgren's men will take on Georgia in an attempt to secure qualification.
A year after their epic run to the World Cup final (where they lost to Denmark), the Croatians are expected to make their mark in this European Championship. Facing a surprising Georgia side, Mateo Maras' teammates battled hard before finally claiming victory (32-29) in their opening match of the tournament. To confirm the team's revival, they will need to do more against Luc Steins' Netherlands, who are looking to bounce back after their opening defeat.
