Mittag retires from international football

Olympic champion Anja Mittag’s time with the Germany Women’s national team has come to an end. The World and European champion announced her decision on social media:

Nach 12 Jahren voller Stolz im Trikot der Deutschen Nationalmannschaft, ist es heute an der Zeit „Danke“ zu sagen. Es ist der Zeitpunkt für mich gekommen aus der Nationalmannschaft zurück zu treten. Danke für vielen unvergesslichen Momente & Titel die wir gemeinsam feiern konnten. Dankbar bin ich für die Freundschaften, die ich während der vielen Jahre knüpfen konnte. Dankbar auch, das ich die Möglichkeit hatte, von Weltklassespielerinnen zu lernen und mein Wissen an zukünftige Topspielerinnen weiterzugeben. Einen Dank auch an alle DFB-Trainer/ innen und Betreuer/innen, die diese Reise begleitet haben. Einen besonderen Dank aber an euch Fans des Frauenfussballs und an alle, die mich auf diesem langen Weg unterstützt haben. In den 158 Länderspielen hatte ich vor allem Spaß am Fußball und war immer Stolz für mein Heimatland spielen zu dürfen. Der Vereinsfussball geht aber weiter. Meine Leidenschaft werde ich für die nächsten zwei Jahre weiterhin für meinem jetzigen Verein in Schweden, den FC Rosengard ausleben. For 12 years I have had the honor of wearing the German national team jersey, however, now it is time to say "good-bye". Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for the unforgettable moments & titles we celebrated together. I am so incredibly grateful for the friendships I have been able to make throughout the years. Words seem to escape me, as I try to sum up the privilege I have had, from sharing the pitch with so many world class players to the young players that I have hopefully inspired. For all of those experiences, memories, and years I will forever be thankful. I would like to thank all the DFB trainers and co-workers who have accompanied me through this journey. I could not have had the success that I or we did without you. And to the fans, thank you! Thank you for being there, with me, through all the ups and downs! Thank you for allowing me to see how amazing you guys are and how important you are for the women's game. In the 158 country games, I have always tried my best to enjoy the game and show you how proud I am to play for my home country. With that being said, I am happy to say that I will continue with

Ein Beitrag geteilt von Anja Mittag (@anjamittag) am 22. Aug 2017 um 3:11 Uhr

“For 12 years I have had the honour of wearing the German national team shirt, however, now it is time to say goodbye. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for the unforgettable moments & titles we have celebrated together. I am so incredibly grateful for the friendships I’ve made throughout the years. Words fail to sum up how privileged I am to have shared a pitch with so many world class players and many young players who I have hopefully inspired. For all of those experiences, memories, and years, I will forever be thankful. I would like to thank all the DFB coaching staff who have accompanied me through this journey. I could not have had the success that I or we did without you. And to the fans, thank you! Thank you for being there, with me, through all the ups and downs! Thank you for allowing me to see how amazing you guys are and how important you are for the women's game. In the 158 games I played for my country, I have always tried my best to enjoy the game and show you how proud I am. With that being said, I am happy to say that I will continue with club football. I will carry on playing for my current team in Sweden, FC Rosengard, for the next two years.”

The 32-year-old made her debut for Germany against Italy on 31st March 2004 and played a total of 158 matches scoring 50 goals. In 2007, she won the World Cup in China and was European champion three times (2005 in England, 2009 in Finland and 2013 in Sweden). Additionally, Mittag won Bronze in the 2008 Olympics in China before winning Gold in Rio last year. On top of this, she won the German league title five times, is a three-time DFB Pokal winner and has won the Champions League twice. Most recently, she has featured for Swedish side FC Rosengard.

Germany Women’s national team head coach, Steffi Jones, said: “Anja has had a prominent role in the national team and will be able to look back on an exceptional international career. She’s been a role model both on and off the field, scored some great goals and won everything she could. I think she’s a great person too and has always been a great servant to the team. She has never made a fuss about anything and we’ll miss her.”

Mittag is the fourth most capped Germany Women’s national team in history with 158 appearances behind Birgit Prinz (214), Kerstin Stegemann (191) and Ariane Hingst (174). In terms of top goalscorers for the Germany Women’s team, Mittag lies in sixth place with 50 goals. Only Birgit Prinz (128), Heidi Mohr (83), Inka Grings (64), Celia Šašić (63) and Bettina Wiegmann (51).