News (engl.)

Germany Women made it two wins from two at the start of the new international season with a 2-1 victory over Japan in Bremen. Afterwards, head coach Christian Wück and his players reflected on the performance. DFB.de has rounded up the reaction.

Head coach Christian Wück: From a coach’s perspective, that was an absolutely top-class game. Both teams were playing at a very, very high level. It took us about 15 minutes to settle into the game, but after that we took control. We dominated for long spells, moved the ball very well and eventually got our reward with the goals. Today showed us that we’re heading in the right direction. The way we managed to adjust our midfield shape slightly and find solutions against a Japan side who really tested us defensively deserves a lot of credit.

Sjoeke Nüsken: It took us a little while to find our feet. Japan played cleverly and there were one or two situations where we were outnumbered in midfield. We spotted that quickly, though, and adjusted. We showed real character today and fought our way back into the game. It was a really enjoyable match. We transitioned well and created our chances. It was just great fun to be involved in. I always enjoy leading the team out as captain, but we have so many players who take responsibility in their own way as well. It’s simply a great group to play with.

Linda Dallmann: I thought we were excellent as a team today, and it was important to see how we responded after going behind. We stuck together right until the end. It was just a great game to be involved in and we really enjoyed ourselves as a team. I think we showed what we’re capable of. Japan obviously play a completely different style of football and they’re difficult to defend against. Sometimes you have to accept that you won’t have the ball, stay patient and then know when to step in. Games like this are incredibly important for us. The atmosphere here in Bremen is always brilliant as well, so we’d be very happy to come back.

Klara Bühl: Of course I’m always happy to get a goal or an assist, but what pleased me most today was the huge step forward we took as a team. We sat down together between the two games and analysed what we needed to improve, so to see that work pay off feels fantastic. We want to take that with us now. I was really frustrated that my chance in the first half didn’t go in, but experience has taught me that another opportunity will usually come along and that there’s no point getting frustrated. Today proved that again.