This time everyone stuck to it.

Trainers, sports directors, players: they have avoided the subject of goal setting in the past few weeks.

The word "semifinals" shouldn't slip out of anyone!

Because when the final round seemed close enough to touch, the German handball players always failed something.

This is how a team emerged in the subjunctive: At the 2018 European Championship in France, the selection of the German Handball Federation in the main round gave twice the chance to reach the semi-finals.

A year later, at the world tournament in Japan, she failed extremely thinly in Serbia.

And at the Danish Corona EM 2020, national coach Henk Groener's team just lost to the Netherlands.

In the end there were moderate placements instead of golden prospects - too little for a team sport in the shadows of attention.

"Many have made progress"

Nobody said that everything would be better this time. But conversations and assessments give out confidence and self-confidence. When the DHB starts the World Cup in Spain with the game against the Czech Republic this Thursday (6 p.m. on sportdeutschland.tv), Groener will be able to lead the best individual team in recent years. Eleven of the 16 nominated professionals earn their money with clubs in European competition. “We have players from Ferencvaros, Esbjerg, Dortmund and Bietigheim. These are clubs that play or have played in the Champions League. That should make our game more stable and our performance less fluctuating, ”says Groener.

Dinah Eckerle in goal, Emily Bölk and Alicia Stolle in the back room, Alina Grijseels in the middle: Groener's regular team are in the best handball age and compete in the European Cup every week. Grijseels from Borussia Dortmund was particularly convincing recently as a goal scorer and director. All of them praised DHB sports director Axel Kromer: “Many have made great progress. We are much more homogeneous than last year. "

With a squad of this quality class - the back positions are also well filled - naturally the focus is on the coach. Groener, 61 years old, has led Dutch women to the top of the world. Often enough he has stated that the funding there is better than the German one. Often enough, he has indicated that he lacks professionalism among the German players - and has received scolding from the Bundesliga for this.

It would have been easier for Groener if they had ended up at the front in just one of his three tournaments. But mostly after a strong start, the engine ran stuttering: Victories against the top nations Norway (2018), Denmark (2019) and Romania (2020) did not provide enough self-confidence to take the last step. There were also discrepancies when the leading players Kim Naidzinavicius and Julia Behnke criticized him and resigned after the EM 2020.

The DHB stands by Groener; President Andreas Michelmann wants Constance. Nevertheless, the contract was only extended until April 30, 2022, because doubts about the capabilities of the team and coach remain - fueled by the puzzling 24:24 in the European Championship qualification against second-rate Belarus. If you believe Kromer, Groener still has a good chance of signing the next working paper soon after the World Cup: “We have had a very respected national coach since 2018. We let the tournament run through, evaluate it and then determine how long the next contract should run. ”Ultimately, this team should become world champions at home with this coach in 2025.

Captain Bölk expects that more is possible in Spain than before: “We have developed well in the team under Henk, even if it is viewed negatively from the outside. I think very highly of him. We are going step by step towards precious metals. I hope that we are the surprise team at this World Cup. ”Groener takes discussions about him and the contract calmly. What annoys him, in his opinion, are unrealistic expectations of German women's handball.

In Llíria near Valencia, Slovakia and Hungary are waiting in the balanced season E, alongside the Czech Republic.

For the first time, 32 countries are taking part, so that third parties also end up in the main round.

Denmark, Tunisia and South Korea could be opponents there - before the quarter-finals continue.

Until then, the path seems easy.

Fans are admitted to the World Cup under 2-G conditions.

Kromer reported that everyone on the German staff had been vaccinated.

And maybe what Henk Groener predicted a few weeks ago in a video call will actually happen: "We have great weeks ahead of us."