With the returnees Lea Schüller and Lena Oberdorf, the German footballers are heading into the decisive Olympic qualification at the Nations League Final Four tournament.
This emerges from the squad of interim national coach Horst Hrubesch, which the DFB published on Tuesday. With a win in the semi-final against France on February 23rd in Lyon, the DFB women would have secured their ticket to the Olympics.
The two finalists qualify for the Olympics alongside hosts France. Should the French defeat the German team, the third team would also be there and the DFB selection would have a second chance against the loser of the game between world champions Spain and the Netherlands. The game for third place and the final will take place on February 28th. The Hrubesch selection then has to play in Sevilla or Heerenveen.
“Win both games”
“Our goal is clear: We want to win both games,” said Hrubesch. “Such games are decided by will. Each individual has to throw everything into it.” Goal scorer Schüller from FC Bayern and midfielder Oberdorf from VfL Wolfsburg recently missed the games against Denmark and Wales with injuries. The 23-man squad for the European vice-champions includes a newcomer, Wolfsburg striker Vivien Endemann. Defender Pia-Sophie Wolter from Eintracht Frankfurt is back after a long time.
New: Vivien Endemann
This time, long-time regular Lina Magull, who moved from FC Bayern to Inter Milan during the winter break, Felicitas Rauch (from Wolfsburg to North Carolina Courage/USA) and World Cup participants Lena Lattwein (Wolfsburg) and Nicole are only nominated on call this time Anyomi (Frankfurt).
Hrubesch would be there
Captain Alexandra Popp and Co. will meet next Monday in Frankfurt/Main to prepare for the important games. The German women won gold in Rio in 2016, but missed the Summer Games in Tokyo. Hrubesch had announced that he would still be in charge of the selection in the event of qualification in France.
Oberdorf to Bavaria?
Spicy note on the side: Lena Oberdorf is apparently about to make a surprising transfer from cup winners VfL Wolfsburg to Bayern Munich. As the soccerdonna portal first reported, the 22-year-old midfielder will join the German champions next season – according to Sport Bild for a German record fee. Bayern did not want to comment on the reports when asked.
