Croatian handball players will begin their World Cup campaign in Gothenburg, Sweden on the first day of December. They will open the tournament against Senegal before facing China two days later. For the final match in the group stage, they are looking forward to a derby against Sweden for first place.

The team has a new coach, Ivica Obrvan, who has ten days to get to know the players and for them to get to know him. He is training some players in Podravka and met the others live for the first time before departing for Poreč, where they will prepare for the next week.

According to Obrvan, the team is ready for the World Cup despite injury problems a few weeks ago. He believes that they can be among the top two teams to advance to the second round and reach the quarterfinals, which would mean qualification for the Olympic Games. The Croatia Cup in Novigrad, with matches against Congo and Montenegro, will serve as preparation.

Since their last campaign, there have been no major problems except for Ana Debelić becoming a mother. The team will have to adapt to some changes but are determined to qualify for Paris as it’s their biggest wish this generation.