News (engl.)

Christian Wück announced his squad for the UEFA Women’s EUROs in Switzerland (2nd to 27th July) on Thursday afternoon at Europa-Park in Rust. The Germany coach and sporting director Nia Künzer discussed the squad and their chances of winning the tournament.

CHRISTIAN WÜCK ON...

...the process of putting the squad together: We’ve got lots of quality in the squad and in all positions. Our job was to make sure we had different attributes in the squad, both on and off the pitch. Deciding who works best together and which players give us lots of flexibility was a bit of a puzzle. We have at least two players for every position. Our decisions have hopefully laid the foundations for us having a successful European Championship.

...a mix of old and young: Having both was really important to us. On the one hand, we wanted young and fresh players, but we also wanted experienced players too. Being able to share experiences is something that brings a team closer together. It was important for us to have a mixture of experience and youthfulness. With an average age of 25.6, we’ve achieved a good balance.

…the key leaders in the squad: The team is being led differently than it was a year ago. Captain Giulia Gwinn has a different leadership philosophy compared to Alex Popp, and that’s perfectly fine. We need to have trust and respect among each other. It’s clear that Giulia Gwinn and Janina Minge will be my point of contact on the pitch. I believe that during the tournament, it will be obvious to those watching who takes on this role, but the players on the pitch will decide that among themselves.

…Cora Zicai’s fitness: Cora had a follow-up MRI a few days ago and has worked with some physiotherapists in Freiburg. The MRI showed that it’s only a superficial injury. The doctors have clearly stated that she will be able to return to the pitch for the start of our pre-tournament preparations on June 19th in Herzogenaurach.

…not selecting Nicole Anyomi: Nicole has been suffering with some pain in her knee for a while now and wants to give that the time it needs to recover. The idea of not taking part in this tournament came from her. Her body is her greatest asset and she can only perform to her best if she’s fully fit. She will obviously have a chance of being called up again by us in the new season.

...not selecting Alara: Alara is competing against a lot of other players in her position. We know what she provides but are also aware that she’s got many years to come at the top level. We chose to go with other players for this tournament.

...not selecting Felicitas Rauch: We also had to make a decision here and ask ourselves if we’d prefer to take an experienced player or go with a young, dynamic one in the form of Franziska Kett. We chose Kett because she has performed well in the past few games.

...the team’s chances at the tournament: I’ve always said that we want to develop as a team. We had to deal with retirements and integrate young players into the side. We haven’t finished developing, but everyone that saw our last two games could see that we’re on the right track. Along with England, Spain and France, we’re considered one of the favourites for the tournament and I’m confident we’ll do well. We will also need some luck on our side and will need to avoid picking up any injuries. If we play to our best, anything is possible.

...Spain, France, England and Germany possibly all reaching the semi-finals: I can’t predict the future, but it’s definitely a possibility after the way these teams have played recently. I do however think at least one surprise package will make it to the semi-finals. Two of these four nations will definitely make it that far.

...training: We will focus on our work in training and won’t play a friendly. We want to get the players up to a high level in the first few days and then start working on tactics after three or four days.

...the host nation Switzerland: We obviously want the players to familiarise themselves with Switzerland a bit. We will have a team event on our second day where we will look to get to know the country a bit better. We won’t just need the support of the Germans fans but also the Swiss ones as we progress throughout the tournament. I therefore think it’s important to establish a connection with the home country.

NIA KÜNZER ON...

...the squad: We’ve put together a great, exciting, and high-quality squad. The team is fun to watch and capable of achieving a lot. I’m happy with the coaching staff. We’ve met, worked intensively, and the communication is working well. Everyone brings their perspective to the table, and I’m confident that with this squad, it’ll be a successful European Championship.

...the team’s chances at the tournament: You go into the tournament with the aim of winning it as a player. We’ve got challenging opponents in the group stage, who we have respect for and will take seriously. There will be a lot of quality in this tournament, but I have the feeling that the opposition will respect us after our recent performances over the past months and that they won’t want to face us.

...the start of the tournament: We’re slowly getting more excited about it. The last round of fixtures provided lots of emotions and we’re now looking forward to an exciting summer.