Tommy Stroot had just sent his players to celebrate when the VfL Wolfsburg coach went into raptures again. Especially about Lena Oberdorf, who stood out in this DFB Cup final – against her future club, FC Bayern. “To achieve such a performance in a game like this with this focus shows their class. She is world class. “It’s crazy to be able to provide such stability at such a young age,” praised the VfL coach after the 2-0 win and spoke highly of the 22-year-old national player’s special “resistance to pressure that few other players have.”
Bayern coach Alexander Straus also found Oberdorf, who was omnipresent that evening, “fantastic, that’s why we did so much to get her.” According to reports, the arch-rival paid at least 400,000 euros to VfL, a German club Record transfer fee.
Bayern President Hainer: “We will come back”
“I can’t imagine going to Bayern,” Schalke fan Oberdorf said shortly before the 2022 European Championship. “Even when Bayern played against Dortmund, I was more for Dortmund. That says it all, right?” When asked about it, she now explained: “It was very special. I got a lot from the media.” She would no longer say a sentence like that today: “That was my younger self when we lost with food. Today I’m mature and grown and I wouldn’t make a statement like that again.”
She didn’t want to be accused of a lack of commitment so shortly before her departure to Munich in the 110th competitive game for VfL given this history: “It was all the more important to me to show that I was playing for VfL Wolfsburg and that I was giving up my last shirt “, she said after a performance that justifies such sentences. Oberdorf won the decisive duel against Bayern’s Sarah Zadrazil, enabling Jule Brands to make it 1-0 (14th minute), and she was also present in the dangerous zone when Dominique Janssen made it 2-0 (40th). Only the 24th competitive goal for VfL was denied her, despite two good chances to crown it all.
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“I am very, very impressed with how Lena Oberdorf, who is still very young, performed here today in such an important game,” praised manager Ralf Kellermann. “She was one of the best players on the pitch, with no sign at all of being nervous or that the situation was weighing on her. That was great.” Captain Popp analyzed appreciatively: “She played a really strong game and won a lot of duels. She not only won it, but she won it forward, she was mostly involved in the offensive actions, distributed the balls and was a goal threat. It’s nice to see that she has this freedom, that she was free in her head.”
But Brand, who had paved the way to triumph with her early lead, was also pleased to receive extra praise from her coach. After a form crisis, the former “Golden Girl” is increasingly showing her great potential. “She helped decide the game, invested an incredible amount and was so extremely valuable for us,” said Stroot in the black “Oops, we did it again” winner’s shirt.
This tenth cup triumph in a row for Wolfsburg was extremely valuable for him personally – especially after the debate about an impending change of guard by the champions from Munich. Stroot felt satisfied: “In my time at Wolfsburg, this victory in the DFB Cup is the one that feels best. It’s now a unique series that I don’t think will ever be achieved again.”
Faeser praises the great atmosphere in the stadium
Bayern Munich club president Herbert Hainer said after the game that despite the defeat, he was “proud of this team,” “which defended the German championship just a few days ago.” It “won’t be the last final” for the women’s team “, said Hainer and congratulated their big rivals from Wolfsburg on their “deserved tenth cup win in a row”. Coach Straus, however, was “very disappointed because we didn’t show our best and seemed empty in the first half.” But the further development in his second year in Munich makes him positive: “We are on the right track. We will come back and want to compete for every title. But we need more consistency.”
Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) saw the women’s cup final in Cologne as a strong sign, also with a view to Germany’s bid for the 2027 World Cup. The German Football Association would like to hold the title fights in three years together with Belgium and the Netherlands. “We would be ready for a World Cup in the heart of Europe that promotes women and women’s football, that is sustainable and puts the fans at the center,” said the 53-year-old.
“I was particularly pleased that the women’s final was sold out for the second time since last year,” said Faeser, who watched the game in the stadium: “That not only contributed to a great atmosphere, but clearly shows that women’s football is getting better More and more the attention he deserves.” A home World Cup could further increase the attention. The strong competitor is Brazil; the decision in the award process will be made by the world association on May 17th at the 74th FIFA Congress in Bangkok. “We’re all waiting eagerly for this,” said Faeser.
