Euro 2024 handball: the Blues take gloves for their goalkeeper

Les Bleus apprennent la vie sans Vincent Gérard. dpa – Federico Gambarini

Les handballeurs français découvrent à l'Euro la vie sans Vincent Gérard, leur habituel ange gardien, qui a succédé à la légende Thierry Omeyer. En Allemagne, les Bleus se présentent pour la première fois depuis les JO-2000 à un tournoi, sans un titulaire affirmé à ce poste clé.

This shows the stability in this position in the French team which will have to prepare the succession of its last rampart. If Vincent Gérard, 37, misses the Euro due to pubalgia operated on in September, the Paris-2024 Olympic Games should well be his last tournament before his retirement, announced a few weeks ago.

"Vincent, he's someone I'm very close to so I would have liked him to continue a little longer than me, smiles the other soon to be retired Nikola Karabatic. To still be able to enjoy and see it on TV, make stops, get angry and gesticulate in all directions."

Regular number two since Euro-2022, Montpellier goalkeeper Rémi Desbonnet seems to have put on the gloves of the Olympic (2021), world (2017) and European (2014) champion with 150 caps. It was he who was started from the start against North Macedonia on Wednesday (39-29).

Le gardien de l'équipe de France de handball et de Kiel, ancien du Montpellier Handball, Vincent Gérard va mettre fin à sa carrière professionnelle, a-t-il annoncé ce mercredi 20 décembrehttps://t.co/R3EA9Gfynl

— Midi Libre Montpellier (@MLMontpellier) December 20, 2023

The MHB doorman (31 years and 30 sel.) has slightly more experience than his pair in Hérault Charles Bolzinger (23 years and 10 sel.) who has held the cages in the second period. That Samir Bellahcene (28 years old and 4 selections too) also despite the dazzling explosion of the ex-Dunkerquois, medical joker of Vincent Gérard in Kiel and finally extended until 2025.

"If we consider the time spent by each during a major competition, they are relatively equivalent", estimated the coach in Nantes the previous week .

"No hierarchy is established"

"This is a position in full evolution and for which we hope to find certainty with a new configuration to be put in place. For the moment, no hierarchy has been established."

One seems to be taking shape after this first match with Desbonnet in N.1 and Bolzinger to take over. With the advantage that the pair is used to succeeding each other.

Especially since neither one nor the other came through against the Macedonians. Starting with Desbonnet for his debut as No.1 in a major tournament. "It's was a typical first match of a major competition, said the person concerned. It took us a while to get into it. There are one or two balloons myself that I think I need to release. But we were able to raise the defensive level after the timeout and in the second half of the first period."

The French handball team is learning life without Vincent Gérard. dpa – Gregor Fischer

Midway into the match, when Rémi Desbonnet handed over the gloves, he posted a completely satisfactory record (7 saves on 20 shots, 35%) after a complicated first few minutes (1/8). Then his young teammate Charles Bolzinger did not mismatch (6/22, 27%).

Small goalkeeper (1.82m), he has the profile of a seventh outfield player, capable of scoring in the empty goal as well as finding a winger with an adjusted pass during ;#39;a rise of the ball.

The pair should undoubtedly be renewed against Switzerland on Sunday in Berlin. But coach Guillaume Gille could be tempted to call on Samir Bellahcene on Tuesday against Germany, who plays in the Bundesliga like most Germans, including leaders Juri Knorr, Kai Häfner and Johannes Golla.