Amsterdam (AP) – While the German hockey men received the European Championship silver medal with pressed lips, Kais al Saadi in Amsterdam was still stunned on the team bench.
“The disappointment is huge because we noticed that the team is already ready to win tournaments,” said the national coach on Saturday after the 1: 4 against the Netherlands in the penalty shootout. The record champions had previously been extremely close to their first European Championship title since 2013 in the final, but with the final penalty they still received the 2-2 equalizer. “We really didn’t need the last nine seconds,” admitted al Saadi.
Captain Tobias Hauke added: “Such outcomes are also part of the sport. The goals conceded naturally hurt.” For the DHB selection it was the first defeat in the tournament. Overall, however, Hauke was satisfied with the performance: “We played our best tournament game today. That makes me optimistic about everything that comes next in the summer.”
Only one hit in the shootout
The German Olympic team started offensive, but could not overcome Oranje goalkeeper Pirmin Blaak despite numerous chances. Blaak was only powerless against Martin Zwickers (21st minute) from the corner, but defender Jorrit Croon saved his body on the line. Christopher Rühr (21st) turned the seven-meter throw into a well-deserved opening goal.
The hosts equalized at the beginning of the second half when Lukas Windfeder unluckily blocked a shot from Robbert Kemperman (34th) into his own goal. Constantin Staib (56th) managed to get into the Dutch pressure phase 4:10 minutes before the end of the renewed opening goal, but the hosts used the final penalty to 2-2 through Jip Janssen (60th). In the subsequent penalty shootout, only Hoofdklasse legionnaire Florian Fuchs met, while Rühr and Timm awarded Herzbruch.
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