COLOGNE - Comments from Croatia head coach Goran Perkovac (CRO) and right wing Filip Glavaš (CRO); Austria head coach Ales Pajovic (SLO), left back Nikola Bilyk (AUT) and right wing Robert Weber (AUT); France head coach Guillaume Gille (FRA) and right back Nédim Rémili (FRA); and Hungary head coach Chema Rodriguez (ESP) and goalkeeper László Bartucz (HUN) at media calls on Friday.

CROATIA

Goran Perkovac (CRO) – head coach

On the game against France:
“I am very satisfied with how we played for 30 or 40 minutes, we played very good handball against France. My players have a lot of potential, we are a very young team without much experience and in the last minutes of the game, every France player had played more than, I don’t know, 200 international games or something. The forced us in difficult situations, and we made some mistakes.”

On the potential of the Croatian team:
“We have a style, we play fast handball, we take a lot of pleasure together, but we need more time together. We will have that time in the summer, if we go to the Olympics but for now, we need a little bit more experience.

“This is the start of a new generation, for me as a coach, it is really easy because all the players are really enthusiastic and willing to progress. I’m sure that in two or three years, we have the potential to be the best team in the world again.”

On the importance of Domagoj Duvnjak to the team:
“We missed him a lot yesterday, he is very important both on and off the court. Without him and Ivan Martinovic, it is harder for the younger players as they miss their experience. But in the meantime, they still managed to deliver some great things in the past two games. Duvnjak really could not play yesterday, he had a fever and we really hope he can come back tomorrow.”

On the forthcoming game against Hungary:
“They are physically tough, also one of the best teams I have seen since the beginning of the competition. I really hope we can beat them as we need points, otherwise it will be tough for us to qualify.”

Filip Glavaš (CRO) - right wing

On the game against France:
“We had a tough game yesterday, even though I thing we played very good. We made too many technical errors, lost a couple of balls but I still think we were very good. Without Ivan Martinovic and Domagoj Duvnjak, it is harder for us as we are still a very young team. We’ll see if Dule can come back tomorrow.”

On the importance of Domagoj Duvnjak in his team:
“He is our leader, the player with the most caps and he has been our captain for so many years. Everybody knows how much he brings to the team, both on and off the court. He talks to us a lot, helps us out as well. We missed him a lot yesterday.”

On the progress Croatia showed in the last year:
“We are a good mix between old and young players, a lot of talent with players like Duvnjak or Luka Cindric to drive them, so to say. They kind of introduced us to the family, as they did with me two years ago when I arrived in the national team. We all play in good clubs, some of us play the European competitions and we make a lot of progress quickly. This is a good combination, a great force for the team also.”

On Saturday’s game against Hungary:
“We are going to play against a very young team. A lot of players know each other, I do know a couple of them as well, so I hope that we can win this one. I expect a low-paced game, as I think the defence will be the key to decide the winning team.”

AUSTRIA

Ales Pajovic (SLO) - head coach, Austria

On the win against Hungary:
“I’m not too happy about the way we played, but we took the two points. Sometimes, you just have to be happy with the result and yesterday was one of those days. We gave everything, we played with our heart despite some players being at the hotel with illness or injury. We lost players along the way but we still managed to play well.

“We played our game and at half-time we told ourselves we still needed to push. The last twenty minutes of the game were crazy, our offence played well but I feel like this second half lasted two hours.”

On the extra motivation Austria are currently showing:
“I don’t know what happens, but it feels like we are on fire, we are full of confidence. Even in bad situations, we manage to keep our composure and to still play for each other. It is amazing to see such a motivation within the team.”

On the physical state of the players:
“It has been intensive since the beginning of the season, but the guys are going the extra mile. We are playing to the limit, but our seven against six play is working very well. The players are tired but when you play such matches, you don’t feel the pain anymore. We are really looking forward to playing Germany tomorrow but at the moment, every minute is about recovering. What is happening to us is crazy and for sure, you recover better after a win.”

On the game against Germany:
“We saw yesterday it would a very tough game, with what they showed against Iceland. They are a very strong team, with a massive defence, very efficient. And when you get past it, you still have to score against Andreas Wolff, so that tells how difficult it is.

“Juri Knorr has a lot of quality in one versus one situations, they have two incredible line players. And when you play against 20,000 fans, that makes it even more difficult. But also more exciting for everyone.”

Nikola Bilyk (AUT) – left back

On the energy Austria needed to put on the table on Thursday:
“It costs us a lot of energy, of course, especially since we were missing key players. But we take so much pleasure, we’re having such a good time together that it’s all worth it. We’re enjoying the moment, and the fact that we win games gives us a lot in return. I still have a lot of gas in the tank and the motivation is very high.”

On the game on Thursday against Hungary:
“We were in the game for 60 minutes, we pushed to the maximum when we understood that we could get the points. Everybody has been really serious and efficient in the important moments. What is happening at the moment is incredible, we really enjoy every moment together and we try not to think about anything else than making it last.”

Robert Weber (AUT) - right wing

On the pleasure he is taking at the moment:
“It is a joy to come and play for the national team every time, and we try not to think about which team we can take points or which we should not take points. I played a lot of important games in the [EHF] Champions League for example, a lot of us have played in Bundesliga but tomorrow will be something else. It’s going to be incredible to play against Germany in such an iconic arena.”

On the team spirit his team is taking at the moment:
“We go from game to game, we are tired but so are the other teams. We can’t lose the pleasure we are taking at the moment. Yesterday, we had important players at the hotel, but still we managed to find other solutions and anyone who steps on the court gives 100 per cent to make up for the absence. Our state of mind is great, we play great together and if it remains this way, we can still win games.”

FRANCE

Guillaume Gille (FRA) - head coach

On the loss to Iceland in the EHF EURO 2022 main round:
“It was a very rock’n’roll game, as I had Covid and I was locked in my room. We totally missed our game but we also made Iceland euphoric. The context was really different, we had a lot of missing players. This defeat was tough to take and it made our competition harder."

On their upcoming match against Iceland:
“This time, things will be a little bit different as I should be on the bench. We are leading the group, Iceland are still looking for their right rhythm, they have amazing players. They are one of the teams with the most individual talents, we know a lot of them because they play in the [Machineseeker EHF] Champions League and in the Bundesliga. Iceland have always had a big handball culture and also a state of mind. They will never let go, never get their hands down and that makes them a very dangerous team.”

On the incident yesterday:
“I can not confirm what happened but what I knew that some people had some bad words. I saw a cup thrown on the court, and that’s not something that is part of the handball world. I don’t want to point the finger, there might have been some idiots in the stands that might have had words that don’t belong in a handball arena. It’s not either pointing the finger or making it a bigger thing than it is.

“I’m really glad that the EHF condemned what happened, there is a need to do some cleaning-up among the fans. Handball games are a battle but it remains civilised and it should remain that way.”

On the players’ recovery:
“We have some data that allow us to evaluate the load of the players. Of course, we have to adapt the protocol, as it will not be the same for Dika Mem and Nicolas Tournat, as they don’t have the same playing time. There is a collective part to the recovery plan, but also an individual part.”

On leaving some talented players in the stands:
“That’s part of my job, and making lists is somehow giving up. We leave great talents in the stands, but in the meantime, I have to make choices. When you see that a double Champions League winner is not playing, that shows you the level at which the whole team is playing. Of course, it is not easy for me, neither for the boys, but that’s part of the work.”

Nédim Rémili (FRA) - right back

On the game against Iceland on Saturday:
“We are the only team in our group with four points. We are confident about how we play, maybe we did not put the nail in our coffin enough in our games, but we managed to be quite safe. We put ourselves in danger and we have to correct it, but our mental and physical strength kept us away from the defeat so far.”

On having so many rotations:
“Egos are doing fine, we’re clever enough to live as a community. For the coach, there is a lot of work to be done, some great players have been left at home and of course. There are a lot of things to handle, some people have more responsibilities in their club than they have here, but that’s part of the national team.

“It is the same thing for every team, I think. The most important thing is that we are all quite satisfied with what we get. I do think that having so many talented players is more a strength than a weakness.”

On having so many Veszprém players in the French team:
“Of course it is a strength, like it was when a lot of us played for Paris Saint-Germain a couple of years ago. We can play with closed eyes, tactically we all know each other. But it’s also good that we know how each other will react on an emotional level too. Even in everyday life as well. We know that there is someone that we can rely on and go for a coffee with, for instance.”

On the defeat from 2022 being an extra motivation:
“I would not talk about revenge but this defeat has stuck in our memories a little bit. They were very demonstrative after they won, we might have not liked it too much. It’s OK to be happy but that time, it was almost trash-talking and it’s still in our throats a little bit. We have not forgotten about any of it, to be honest.”

HUNGARY

Chema Rodriguez (ESP) - head coach, Hungary

On the game against Austria:
"I feel like we did not play a bad game, but we did not manage to kill it. I get the feeling that we had the upper hand but we did not manage to put the nail in the coffin. Then they played seven against six, which they do very well, and that was it."

On the difference between the Hungarian team from 2022 and this year's:
"I feel like I have more quality players and therefore more rotations. Two years ago it was all about seven or eight players and things are a little bit different this time, I can use [Zoltan] Szita or [Gergö] Fazekas a little bit more, for example. Everybody can have some rest and I feel like we are physically fresher this time than what we could have been in the past."

László Bartucz (HUN) - goalkeeper

On the loss against Austria:
"It is really a bad feeling to lose this game, especially with just a one-goal difference. We watched the game again this morning, we saw what went wrong and we will try not to repeat these mistakes tomorrow."

On the forthcoming game against Croatia:
"They are a very good team and also a handball country. This will be a key game for us if we want to have a chance for the semi-final. They have top players who play in the [Machineseeker EHF] Champions League but we also have a lot of quality. We will try to give them a good fight."

On the team gaining more experience from game to game:
"It's not only yesterday's game, but it feels like we are growing as a team and individually since the beginning of the EURO. It's good for players like me to have the chance to play such a huge tournament, you learn a lot and you also make a lot of progress."