Against Wales, Sarai Linder (r.) and the DFB women almost strayed from the Olympic path, now the big players are coming.
Foto: imago/James Whitehead
Perhaps Nadine Keßler, who is responsible for women’s football at UEFA, already knew why she greeted Janni Arnth Jensen with a warm hug at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon (Switzerland) on Monday afternoon. The Danish ex-national player, who she knew well from her playing days, was supposed to have a pre-Christmas present ready for the German footballers shortly afterwards: in the draw for the Final Four of the newly created Nations League, the DFB women received a match with France in the semi-finals on February 23rd next year their dream because it means there is a double chance of getting the two remaining starting places for the 2024 Summer Olympics.
Interim coach Horst Hrubesch had hoped for the already qualified Olympic hosts when the first winner of the Women’s Nations League was determined. »We are very happy about the lot. France is a seasoned and mature team that will demand a lot from us. We’ll have to throw everything in. We recently proved that we can do that against Denmark. We won’t go into the Final Four as favorites,” said the 72-year-old. Nevertheless, it is clear: »We have two games, we want to win both. Each and every person must give their all so that we can take the next step together.«
With a victory in France, the DFB women would certainly be back at the Olympic football tournament for the first time since winning the gold medal in Rio de Janeiro in 2016. In the event of a defeat, there would be a second chance in the game for third place. The only downside: Germany also has to compete away in the final or the game for third place (on February 28, 2024). It is quite possible that the semi-final against France will be played in Lyon, where the friendly match for the men’s national teams will also be played on March 23rd. The final games of the 2019 Women’s World Cup also took place at the home of Olympique Lyon.
Spain and the Netherlands face each other in the other semi-final. The new competition format, in which the DFB selection secured first place ahead of Denmark on the last match day despite a zero in Wales thanks to the help of Iceland, was immediately well received. “The average number of spectators in the stadiums has more than doubled compared to the last qualifying round,” said Keßler, “and with a total of more than 680,000 spectators in this phase, we are well on the way to reaching the mark by the end of the European Championship qualification to crack one million viewers.” Uefa will continue on this path when in April European Qualifiers start in exactly the same mode.
The teams are divided into four performance levels based on the Nations League. Germany is playing in category A again and has to come first or second there in order to get a direct ticket to the 2025 European Championship in Switzerland. In this respect, experiments will no longer be possible when the European Championship qualification starts in spring 2024.
Against this background, the German Football Association (DFB) must have a plan B in place when filling the coaching position should Hrubesch quit if his Olympic dream is dashed. After Bundesliga candidates Stephan Lerch (TSG Hoffenheim) and Tommy Stroot (VfL Wolfsburg) were reluctant to comment on their current contracts, it could be candidates with more experience who would be more readily available.
Colin Bell, current South Korea national coach, watched the Bundesliga game Eintracht Frankfurt against TSG Hoffenheim (3:1) on Sunday.
The German-Englishman, who was a spoilsport at the World Cup in Australia, would be immediately enthusiastic about the job as national coach because the 62-year-old is firmly convinced of the players’ potential. But there should also be mind games with Jill Ellis. The two-time world champion coach of the USA heads FIFA’s technical study group. The 57-year-old would not be a comfortable and certainly not a cheap solution. But all of this will only be an issue anyway when world champion Nia Künzer, who will be responsible for such personnel issues in the future, is introduced as sports director in the new year.
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