The surprise of the championship was the match between Brazil and Serbia, but after Macedonia beat Russia 36:30, in a match that decided their fate at the championship, there is no mistake. Kiril Lazarov and his team are the best surprise of the championship, whilst the Russians are the worst.

Lazarov like a machine, Russians could only watch

It looked like the great handball nation had what it takes to enter the next round of the competition when they drew against Germany fight, led by the referees. They were not bad after the loss from Poland in the last moments, just as they were great in their victory over Tunis.

However, yesterday’s match against Algeria, who they barely beat by one point, awoke doubt in the capability of the Russian team. Those doubts were awaken by Macedonia, who beat the gold medal winners from the Olympics, Iceland, and held the Germans to a draw until the referees took the main role.

Tunis surprised them and took important points from them, but the win against Poland showed what they can do, and what they are prepared for. Led by a player from Zagreb CO, Lazarov, but besides him being their greatest advantage, he was their greatest weakness. They built everything on him, which was confirmed against Germany when they were left without him. They lost in 15 minutes with a ten goal difference.

Aggressive and led by an army of fans, Macedonia earned entrance into the second round in Zadar, and therefore their greatest success in men’s handball. You can say that the era of Macedonian handball has arrived, because the women were excellent as hosts at the previous European Championship, and the men now have exceeded all expectations. All we can say for the Russians now is “da svidanja”.