Last night, the Spanish team won its 19th European Skate Hockey Championship, played in Sant Sadurní d’Anoia, after defeating Portugal (4-2) with goals from Marc Grau and Marc Julià in a final they controlled from start to finish. It is the third consecutive continental title for Guillem Cabestany.
After both missed opportunities by Nil Roca and Pau Bargalló in the early stages of the match, the Spanish team materialized the superiority it showed at the start on the pitch thanks to Marc Grau, who took advantage of a clearance from the Portuguese goalkeeper, Pedro Henriques, to open the scoring in the 11th minute.
The game went to halftime with that Spanish advantage by the minimum, which Bargalló failed to increase after missing a direct free kick. Nor was Xavi Barroso, who sent the ball to the crossbar in full Spanish attack. Although Marc Grau appeared to make it 2-0 with the assistance of Bargalló. Moments later, Marc Julià did transform a new free kick with a masterful execution to bring the game to 3-0.
Portugal woke up and entrusted itself to intensity in search of the comeback. And that was how Gonçalo Alves opened the scoring for his team with a whiplash still with 19 minutes to go. Portugal (3-1) in an unappealable pitch. Throwing the team on his back, Alves missed a direct free kick, but scored the second to put fear in Spain’s body even with 6 minutes of play remaining.
It was there when Marc Julià reappeared, who did not miss another direct free kick to surprise Henriques again and put the final 4-2. The last minutes were intense, although Portugal no longer had more clear chances. It is also worth noting the good performance in goal by Carles Gau.
