“Westland south of Stadt. This weekend we will witness a weather phenomenon that has never occurred in the region before. For the first time, but hopefully not the last time, the biggest stars will shine brightest over the island of Sotra outside Bergen. And they will shine just as brightly regardless of whether the sky is cloudy or cloudless. We cannot guarantee that several meters of rain will not fall, so it is recommended that people stay indoors at Sotra Arena and let themselves be warmed by the ball show world class hands.”

Just like that, I imagined the weather forecast heading into next weekend. Sotra was never interested in star sprinkles. Even Smokie pales in comparison to the gang that will cross the Sotra Bridge now.

“Maybe the king will come”, I wrote in my previous blog. And sure enough, he appeared. Not with a crown on her head, but with long flowing hair and sticky fingers.

Mikkel Hansen hasn’t played an international match since the WC final in January. But when world champion Denmark visited Western Norway, he led a very strong Danish squad. Here we talk about the best handball players of the last decade. Not just in Denmark – all over the world.

If you want to look at Nikolaj Jacobsen’s team, there is no place for Lasse Andersson in the original squad.

The 29-year-old has wreaked havoc in the Bundesliga so far, and tops the charts for top scorers and assists in the toughest league in the world. However, Simon Pytlick’s injury was necessary for Andersson to join Sotra.

His Füchse Berlin teammate, Mathias Gidsel, has been the Bundesliga’s best player this season. And crown prince Mikkel Hansen is of course involved in the sea gap outside Bergen. In my eyes, Gidsel is currently competing with Dika Mem from France to be the best player in the world.

Niklas Landin needs no further introduction. The best goalkeeper in the world in the last decade has not weakened since he returned to Aalborg. But he is now inhaled by Emil Nielsen. The Barcelona goalkeeper watched the WC last January on TV, but now Jacobsen knows that Nielsen is ready to play in the championship.

Another person returning to the national team is Hans Lindberg, or “Hans Majestet”, as the Danes call him.

The immortal winger became the Bundesliga’s all-time top scorer this spring. The 41 year old player has scored 2,975 goals in Germany’s top flight. Overall, he will become the first player to reach 3,000 goals in the Bundesliga before Christmas. For comparison, the Norwegian player with the most goals in the Bundesliga has scored exactly 1000. Quick Lunch at Sotra Arena for whoever is the first to name the Norwegian Bundesliga top goalscorer. Write his name in the comments column on Facebook.

Could it be that Sander Sagosen or Harald Reinkind has scored the most goals in the German League? At least they are both included in Jonas Wille’s squad and are guaranteed to score goals all weekend.

Therefore, “Elleville Wille” realized that she had to go to Western Norway to sharpen her performance in the European Commission. Because who doesn’t get better from a long weekend in the fresh ocean air and competing against the best of the best? With these accusations, the scent of an EC medal is clear.

Østfolding brought its entire stock of fireworks to Sotra. Here there will be explosions and rockets as Sagosen, Reinkind, Magnus Abelvik Rød, Gøran Johannessen and others are released. And for the first time in many years, a Norwegian national team manager can prepare for the championship without injuries to his key players.

But don’t think that only world champion Denmark can make Sotra uncomfortable for the Norwegian handball star.

Spain has won medals in the last five championships, and has also added European Championship preparations to the Sotra Arena.

In contrast to his Nordic colleagues, Spanish coach Jordi Ribera has had several injury problems ahead of the EC. Alex Dusjsjebajev, Jorge Maqueda and Ian Tarrafeta have all missed the Gjensidige Cup due to injury.

Dujshebajev in particular would be a big loss for the Spaniards.

But it gives us the opportunity to get to know two of the greatest handball talents in the world. Because Ribera has found a place for 17-year-old twins Petar and Djordje Cikusa. Both have won the World Cup and European Championships for youth national teams, and this season has been a breakthrough for Barcelona.

You’re not like other 17-year-olds when you get significant playing time for one of the world’s best club teams.

Now the Cikusa twins will play alongside world stars such as Gonzalo Vargas de Perez, Joan Cañellas, Aleix Gomez, Ferran Solé and Agustin Casado in the national team.

Gomez is probably the best winger in the world right now – regardless of team.

“It’s easier to make a technically good player two meters tall than to make a technically good player two meters tall!”

That was the answer of coaching legend Anatoly Yevtushenko when asked why all the players on the Soviet Union team in the 1980s were over two meters tall (apart from the father of the tram shooter, Alexander Karshakevich).

But while you still have a physical advantage at two meters, handball has evolved in a direction that allows smaller players to assert themselves. However, it is a bit unnatural that this 172 centimeter tall man is among the world’s best full-backs.

Because if you look too high, you risk overlooking the Luc Steins in the stall queue at Sotra Arena.

The Dutchman not only has one of the fastest feet in the world in handball, but he also has one of the fastest heads in handball. Not to mention he is one of the funniest handball players to watch.

For decades, the Dutch national team was safely placed in the valley of handball’s shadow. But with offensive defense and speed that is difficult for any national team to match, the orange is a feared opponent.

Steins has Dani Baijens and Kay Smits at side-back, and I doubt if we’ll see a faster line-up of full-backs at EC in January.

Thus, the stage is set for world-class entertainment this weekend. If you haven’t got your tickets yet, just buy them. Because this is a sport at a level you rarely experience in this part of the world

– Get up Nygård (Handball blog)

Here you can find tickets: https://www.eventim.no/artist/golden-league-gjensidige-cup-2023/