Dhe German soccer players had to take a beating at the end of their trip to the USA. Martina Voss-Tecklenburg’s team not only lost 2-1 (1-0) to the host world champions on Sunday evening, but also had to have midfielder Lena Oberdorf taken to the hospital for an X-ray with a shoulder injury. “She fell on her shoulder. We hope it’s not that bad,” said the national coach about the important midfielder from VfL Wolfsburg.
The 20-year-old was named best young player at the European Championships in England in July. Oberdorf was substituted in the 33rd minute, after which Voss-Tecklenburg noticed “a slight break” in their team’s game. Three days after the 2-1 win over the Americans in Fort Lauderdale, the runners-up at the European Championships were defeated in Harrison near New York in the second friendly by the US team.
“A very, very good start”
Oberdorf’s club colleague Jule Brand scored in the 18th minute in front of 26,317 spectators in the Red Bull Arena. Sophia Smith and Mallory Pugh then turned the game around within two minutes with their goals (54th/56th). “We had a very, very good start in this game,” said Voss-Tecklenburg. In the second half, however, they made mistakes and sometimes acted uncleanly, “that punished the USA with their outstanding quality”.
Goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger from Chelsea played her fourth international match in the first half for the DFB-Frauen. After the European Championships in England, the 32-year-old made it public that her thyroid cancer had returned. After radioiodine therapy, she’s been back on the pitch for a long time – and she’s now listening to the national anthem with a happy face. “I saw that smile the same way. I was very happy about that because I know that it was something special for her to play here in front of 26,000 after cancer. And those are the really important moments,” said Voss-Tecklenburg.
Berger didn’t get too much to do: The Americans around Alex Morgan (200th international match) showed an unremarkable first half. While first-choice goalkeeper Merle Frohms from VfL Wolfsburg took a break, Almuth Schult from Angel City FC was between the posts after the break, as announced. Bayern professional Lina Magull missed the big chance to make it 2-0 after the change. Shortly thereafter, Smith gave Schult no chance with a shot under the bar. At 1: 2, Frankfurt’s Nicole Anyomi and Sjoeke Nüsken did not look good. The second round clearly belonged to the Americans.
For the DFB women, the two friendlies are already in preparation for the World Cup from July 20 to August 20, 2023 in Australia and New Zealand. There, Germany meets Morocco, Colombia and South Korea in the preliminary round. The next measure is planned for February with a training camp in Spain and a home international match.
