Voss-Tecklenburg: You saw in some instances that there was a team playing against us that were more robust. However, we also saw a lot of positives, take Giulia Gwinn for example, who had a great tournament. You have to also look at how much the face of the team will change. We have two or three older players where you’ll have to see what happens.
Question: Must there now be a discussion with the teams and the DFB?
Voss-Tecklenburg: We have to consistently follow through with what we’ve decided for everyone. We are in communication with all the different areas and are always critical with whatever situation we’re in. We will see how our potential national players develop. I’m not anxious. And even though we lost a game, we certainly do not have to question everything.
Question: The Germany Women’s team received a lot of encouragement and support during the tournament. How will the sudden stop affect the team?
Voss-Tecklenburg: If you consider the objectives, it isn’t a sudden stop. We can’t let ourselves get confused. The loss means we have to work and I’m sure we can do that together. You have to analyse things during this process. And I hope that the people will have seen one thing: This team has potential and this team has a future – we need the support that this team deserves.
The Germany Women’s team were not able to make it to the semi-finals in France as Martina Voss-Tecklenburg’s team were beaten 2-1 by Sweden in the quarter-finals. After the game, Voss-Tecklenburg spoke about the World Cup exit and the fact that the team missed the opportunity for Olympic qualification.
Question: Mrs Voss-Tecklenburg, you said before the tournament that the main target was Olympic qualification. Now, looking towards 2020, how difficult will this setback be for the Germany Women’s team.
Martina Voss-Tecklenburg: It’s relatively difficult to predict at the moment. I’m looking at the sporting aspects. This tournament did us good in terms of our process. Every tournament helps young players. We didn’t manage to qualify because Europe has such a good quality of football. You could see that in this game. It doesn’t have to be a setback for us. We have to set ourselves a new target, and that is the European Championship. We will try everything to qualify.
Question: Did Dzenifer Marozsan live up to expectations when she was put on in the second half?
Voss-Tecklenburg: Yes she did.
Question: Before the game you said that Germany has never been away from the pinnacle of world football. What do you make of that after that quarter-final?
Voss-Tecklenburg: That’s a question that requires the definition: “How big is the pinnacle of world football?” The game was tight. We’ve shown time and again where we sit in the world. What matters is the consistency to get back up when you have setbacks. That’s something that we’ve experienced for the first time with this tournament and now we have to analyse how we move on from this situation.
Question: Does the team in general lack the experience to deal with such type of situations?
Voss-Tecklenburg: You saw in some instances that there was a team playing against us that were more robust. However, we also saw a lot of positives, take Giulia Gwinn for example, who had a great tournament. You have to also look at how much the face of the team will change. We have two or three older players where you’ll have to see what happens.
Question: Must there now be a discussion with the teams and the DFB?
Voss-Tecklenburg: We have to consistently follow through with what we’ve decided for everyone. We are in communication with all the different areas and are always critical with whatever situation we’re in. We will see how our potential national players develop. I’m not anxious. And even though we lost a game, we certainly do not have to question everything.
Question: The Germany Women’s team received a lot of encouragement and support during the tournament. How will the sudden stop affect the team?
Voss-Tecklenburg: If you consider the objectives, it isn’t a sudden stop. We can’t let ourselves get confused. The loss means we have to work and I’m sure we can do that together. You have to analyse things during this process. And I hope that the people will have seen one thing: This team has potential and this team has a future – we need the support that this team deserves.
