Champions mentality propels Spain into M20 EHF EURO final

Denmark's dream of avenging last year's loss to Spain in the IHF Men's World Youth Championship final was left shattered on the floor of Arena Zlatorog in Celje as the Spaniards mounted an incredible comeback in the last 15 minutes of the match.

Spain were behind almost the entire match, but saved the best for last, showcasing their champions mentality once again. On Sunday they will try and defend their title in this age category, while Denmark, who have won this tournament the most times (4), will play for bronze.

SEMI-FINAL 1

Denmark - Spain 34:36

• Denmark failed to capitalise on Spain's slow start, which saw them make five technical faults in the first 10 minutes alone. Despite that, Denmark could not move away from them for more than three goals in the first half
• line player Victor Romero and back court player Ferran Castillo helped Spain stay in the touch for the larger part of the game. They combined for 17 goals
• in the first 44 minutes Denmark scored 30 goals and only four in the last 16. Spain ended the game with a 10:4 run starting from Denmark's lead 30:26
• Spain's first lead came in the 53rd minute when Castillo scored for 32:31
• Alvaro Pérez's contribution was also significant, considering he made seven saves in the final quarter of the match (11 in total)
• Spain have won three of the last five editions of this tournament. If they win again on Sunday, they will equal four golds by Denmark, who have also won one silver and one bronze

Third Spanish gold in a row on the horizon

In a much anticipated semi-final Spain got the better of Denmark, showing incredible resilience and persistence, even though they were behind for over 50 minutes.

For most of the game Denmark were looking more compact of the two teams, with Frederik Pedersen, Dahlgaard and Lykke setting the pace of their plays.

However, Spain were able to fight back each and every time. Through Romero and Castillo in the first half, then Pérez on goal, Barrufet from the seven-metre line and Cikusa Jelicic from outside in the second period.

The Danes started questioning themselves after their precious four-goal lead slipped away and never really recovered in the final few minutes.

Spain's star quality prevailed again and on Sunday this generation will have an incredible opportunity to win a third straight gold, having become U18 European and U19 World champions.