GROUP B
Slovenia vs Serbia 27:24 (13:15)
- Slovenia marked their 30th EHF EURO game with a victory, on what was the last night of competition in Celje
- the co-hosts will take two points with them into the main round in Ljubljana for the win over Denmark
- the score progressed slowly in the opening minutes, despite no saves from the goalkeepers, reflecting the solid defence from both sides. After five minutes, only two goals had been scored (1:1) before the pace picked up
- following poor starts in their previous two matches, Serbia were surely much more satisfied with their opening, as they kept the game level then took the lead after the 10-minute mark. Slovenia came back to equalise once, at 13:13 in the 28th minute, but Serbia scored the last two goals of the half to hold an edge at the break
- a 5:0 run early in the second half turned the match around, as Slovenia took the lead for the first time at 17:16 thanks to a goal from captain Ana Gros in the 39th minute and stayed in front from that point
- after scoring six goals and playing an important role in defence, Slovenia back Elizabeth Omoregie earned the player of the match award
Slovenia earn best result since 2004
The last time Slovenia progressed from the preliminary round at the Women's EHF EURO was 18 years ago, when the best ranking ever for the side was recorded, ninth. With their progression to the main round, Slovenia are now ranked inside the top 12.
Since 2004, Slovenia ranked 16th three times – in 2006, 2010 and 2020. In 2016 they were 14th and in 2018 they were 13th. They did not qualify for the editions in 2008, 2012 or 2014.
The home EHF EURO is therefore already a success for Slovenia, but their ambitions certainly do not end with a bus ride to Ljubljana.
