Christian Wück had already announced what this game on Friday evening at Wembley Stadium would be like for him. Not only his debut as national coach, but also the first of four experiments that he wants to carry out by the end of the year. Four tests that will help him get to know better the players he intends to guide on the sidelines for as long and as successfully as possible. And Wück must have felt a bit like he had been standing on the pitch himself.
The 51-year-old could hardly stand still, he ran, he gestured, he shouted from start to finish. He strained his gaze at the pitch, at this wild back and forth. And when it was over, when the German national team had won 4-3 against England, he went to the bench as calmly as if he had all his emotions, all his energy used up. Like his six predecessors, Wück began his term in office with a victory – in an impressive way.
“The players won the game today on their own. It would be wrong to blame everything on the new coach,” said Wück after his debut on ARD. The new national coach also expressed some criticism: “You have to be more calm.” Giulia Gwinn spoke of a “roller coaster ride of emotions. There was just everything there: goals, penalties, offside goals, hits on the post.”
National football team
:The getting to know you phase begins
The upheaval for the DFB women begins against European champions England at Wembley Stadium: with national coach Christian Wück and without influential players like Alexandra Popp. Some things will change now.
In this case, who would be on the pitch for this game was expected with even more excitement. After all, it was Wück’s first line-up as national coach of the German women’s team. And it was clear that he had to make more changes than he otherwise might have intended.
Without the resigned defense chief Marina Hegering and the ailing Kathrin Hendrich, the well-rehearsed central defense was missing. The defensive line in front of goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger was made up of Giulia Gwinn, Sara Doorsoun, Janina Minge and Sarai Linder. In midfield, Wück relied on the double six Elisa Senß and Sjoeke Nüsken. Linda Dallmann spun one further forward, Jule Brand and Klara Bühl played in the outside positions. And because Lea Schüller and Laura Freigang were also unavailable for the offensive at short notice, Leipzig striker Giovanna Hoffmann experienced perhaps the best setting for a national team debut that one can imagine.
The new national coach has a wild opening phase against England
And in the second minute she was involved in a goal. After England captain Leah Williamson lost the ball, Hoffmann ran out, passed to Linda Dallmann – and because she was brought down by Millie Bright in the penalty area, a penalty was awarded as a gift. Very friendly, because that evening inevitably brought back memories of the last encounter between these teams in this stadium: European Championship 2022, final, 2-1 after extra time for the English women, not least because a handball was punished just as little as their obvious time play the final phase.
Two and a half years later, eight Germans from that squad were still there at the new edition of the European Championship final. The captain was not Alexandra Popp, who resigned a few weeks ago, but Giulia Gwinn. The right-back then took immediate responsibility for the penalty – and reliably converted to take the lead in the third minute. Wück smiled with relief. England almost equalized through Ella Toone, but because Lauren Hemp was previously offside, her supporters among the 47,967 spectators only cheered briefly – and then fell completely silent. Klara Bühl delivered Gwinn with a precise diagonal pass to the right side. She put the ball a little too far in front of her, but before any foot could get in her way, she fired from 15 meters to the left inside post to make it 0-2. Wück raised his clenched fists in the air. This is probably not how he could have dreamed of his premiere.
The 51-year-old saw a wild initial phase, which he watched anxiously on the sidelines. Suddenly Alessia Russo appeared in front of goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger and shot in a similar way to Gwinn. This time, however, the post deflected the ball away from the goal. The DFB women started bravely, with a lot of fire on the offensive. However, given the high speed that the English women were able to keep up, there were also mistakes and ball losses that visibly infuriated the new national coach. At one point he turned around on the lawn and stalked toward the bench, his arms outstretched and his expression angry. And perhaps a few scraps of it made it through the noise to his players, because what happened next calmed Wück down again.
Once again it was Hoffmann who provided the assist with an ideal through ball to the left side, where Bühl was waiting and ran forward decisively. Instead of playing, Bühl took the shot and how: very coolly into the left corner, almost half an hour was over. And who knows what that evening would have been like if there hadn’t been a video referee, which is by no means a given in women’s football. In any case, shortly after Bühl’s goal, Gwinn received the ball on his arm from a cross, the scene was examined, and referee Marta Huerta awarded a penalty. Berger became a heroine at the Olympic Games thanks to her saves, especially on penalty kicks. But she was unable to counteract this shot from Bayern Munich’s Georgia Stanway despite the correctly chosen corner.
33 minutes had now been played with an intensity that would have been enough for several games. But it continued like that. The English women were given a lot of space for a ball relay and took advantage of it coldly. Beth Mead passed the ball inside to Stanway from the right, Berger came out, but Stanway simply smashed the ball over the German goalkeeper into the left corner for her brace in the 36th minute. Breather? Almost. In the fifth minute of stoppage time, Dallmann tried from 30 meters. A shot that deserved to be rewarded but bounced off the crossbar.
Even various changes after the break don’t cause much confusion
Wück didn’t want to overload the first few days together and preferred to pass on details. The tactics worked, even various changes after the break didn’t cause much disruption. First came Felicitas Rauch for Linder and Selina Cerci for Hoffmann (46th), later Sara Däbritz for Nüsken and Pia-Sophie Wolter for Gwinn (63rd) as well as Sophia Kleinherne for Doorsoun (68th) and Vivien Endemann for Bühl (83rd).
Jule Brand almost increased the score, but because Gwinn was previously offside, her goal in the 51st minute didn’t count. But the Germans kept up the pressure constantly. It was then a set piece that made them celebrate again: after a free kick there was turmoil in the English penalty area, Alessia Russo hit Wolter’s foot while trying to catch the ball in the air. Referee Huerta pointed to the spot. And again it was the captain who took the ball. Däbritz took over Gwinn’s armband when they were replaced. With the same determination she made it 4-2 in the 72nd minute.
Then: Another offside goal, this time from Lauren Hemp. As well as a goal of the really annoying kind. Berger seemed to already have Hemp’s free kick firmly in his hands, let it fall and then Lucy Bronze was there. Including injury time, there was still a quarter of an hour to play. But the national coach no longer had to be annoyed.
