Turkey's U18 National Team went down 41-32 to Sweden in Belgrade in the opening match of the M18 EHF EURO 2026 placement round. Facing Sweden, who finished third in Group A, the young national side once again saw the game's fate decided in the first half: trailing 24-13 at the break, Turkey could not find the ground to close an 11-goal gap in the second half.
In truth, the second 30 minutes of the match revealed the young team's real potential. Turkey closed out the second half 19-17 in their favour, playing more productive handball than Sweden over that period. This stretch made clear once again that the issue is not with the team's overall game, but with how they start matches.
Offensively, the picture improved markedly compared to the group stage. Turkey reached their highest goal tally of the tournament with 32 (having managed only 25, 23 and 23 in the group stage). The scoring load was also well distributed: Mehmet Ege Tan, Emre Koçdemir and Emirhan Uyman each scored six goals, while Batu Karabiçak added five and Atahan Akçam four. Unlike against elite opposition, the young national side's attacking organisation flowed more smoothly against a defence of a comparable level.
For the young national team, the placement round continues tomorrow against North Macedonia. Having closed out Group A with three defeats just like Turkey, North Macedonia stands as the most even-matched and most winnable opponent of the tournament. The message from the Sweden match is clear: if Turkey can start the game ready from the first minute and avoid digging a first-half hole, this team has the strength to see a match through to the end.
Source: EHF / M18 EHF EURO 2026
First Test of the Placement Round: Sweden 41-32 — Second-Half Resilience and the Tournament's Highest Goal Tally
Turkey U18 fell 41-32 to Sweden in the opening match of the M18 EHF EURO 2026 placement round, unable to overturn an 11-goal first-half deficit; still, a 32-goal output and a won second half produced the most encouraging performance of the tournament so far.
In This Story
- In the opening match of the placement round, Turkey U18 lost to Sweden 41-32 (half-time 24-13).
- Turkey won the second half 19-17 and reached their highest goal tally of the tournament with 32, the scoring spread evenly led by Ege Tan, Koçdemir and Uyman with six goals apiece.
- Tomorrow brings the most even-matched opponent of the placement round, North Macedonia; the key will be starting the game ready, without opening up another first-half hole.
The Sweden match painted the clearest picture yet of "two different Turkeys": a team that scored 13 and conceded 24 in the first half turned into an entirely different side in the second, scoring 19 and conceding just 17. The scoreboard reads as a defeat, but the underlying numbers signal two positive developments — a tournament-record 32 goals and scoring spread across five players prove that the attack genuinely functions well against comparable opposition. One chronic question remains: why does this team wake up so late in matches? If the answer comes within the first 10 minutes against North Macedonia, the placement round could yet produce a win — because the handball this team showed in the second half is good enough to carry a full match.
