DFB women in World Cup qualification: Criticism after 5-1 win and worries about Giulia Gwinn

This scene had at least the potential for a pub quiz; as a picture puzzle it could also make it into a TV guessing show, medium level of difficulty, maybe even higher. To see: an exemplary moment during the third game in qualifying for the 2027 World Cup in Brazil, on the pitch the German footballers against those of the Austrian national team. The camera captures Christian Wück in the 76th minute, sitting almost motionless on the bench on the sidelines, his shoulders slumped, his gaze fixed and empty. What did the national coach just see?

Answer A: a wasted opportunity? B: a devastating goal conceded? Option C: a well-prepared and consistently completed goal by his own team? Or D: an injury to a player?

Well, actually this: Rebecca Knaak had headed the ball far forward to Lea Schüller, and via Larissa Mühlhaus it quickly ended up at Jule Brand, who consistently completed a well-prepared attack to make it 4-0. In the end the scoreboard should show 5:1, third win in the third game, first in the group with nine points and 14:1 goals. But Christian Wück was bothered by a few things.

His displeasure was still evident when he came to the old gymnasium next to the Max Morlock Stadium, which is the football home of the second division team 1. FC Nürnberg. The press conferences in this room seem as if the upper school had set up a small stage for the prom. And there the football teacher sat and explained his thoughts at the end of an evening that could have had more. “Today we didn’t quite reach our performance limit and the level that the team had already shown,” said Wück, who saw a lot of inaccuracies and ball losses: “That’s why it was very, very exhausting because we had to keep chasing after them. And that annoyed me because it was simply unnecessary.”

Gwinn wanted to continue playing, which was a good sign for the national coach. But it was noticed “that she couldn’t play freely”

What the result belied: The efficiency that stood out in the first two games of this year against Slovenia (5:0) and Norway (4:0) was missing in various moments. Instead, sloppiness crept in with a clearly inferior opponent who has been in crisis for some time. The Germans launched one offensive action after the other, Austria countered with a five-man chain and benefited from mistakes.

The national coach couldn’t be happy with the first half in particular. The performance fell short of the formulated claim of re-establishing oneself among the best in the world, which Wück consistently incorporates into the evaluation. This would have required more precision and cleaner technology. “This is complaining at a high level,” said the 52-year-old, summing up his criticism. “For me, the top nations include a team that wins such games more cleverly. But don’t get me wrong, we are generally very satisfied with the performance and development of the team.”

Satisfaction on Tuesday evening was fueled not least by looking at the tenth position. It turned out to be a problem area at the European Championships in Switzerland in the summer. It can now be staffed reliably and variably again. As a measure, the coaching team moved Jule Brand from the right wing to the center after the tournament, which gave the German game flexibility. Against Austria, Wück again relied on the intelligent Linda Dallmann, who was not convincing at the European Championships, but recently showed her top form when FC Bayern reached the semi-finals of the Champions League. “If you need playful solutions, it is very difficult to get past Linda Dallmann,” explained Wück. If the opponent wants to control the game themselves and challenge his team defensively, the decision could fall back on Brand: “To be honest, Jule doesn’t care. The main thing is that she plays.”

The 23-year-old from Olympique Lyon provided the assist to make it 1-0 (corner), 2-0 (cross), and 3-0 (corner) – and finally scored herself in the aforementioned 4-0. At 5-1, Brand moved cleverly in the penalty area and initially tied an opponent to him, giving goal scorer Lea Schüller more space. When asked about the abundance of participation, Brand looked somewhat surprised. Had she experienced this before? “I don’t know. Of course I’m very happy that I was able to help the team. But it wasn’t my best game either.” At first she got in her own way with bad passes and actionistic dribbling until Brand was able to shine after the break: “She has to know what sets her apart, what makes her strong – and bring that into our game very often,” said Wück: “Then she will move the entire team forward.”

And so one concern remained from this ultimately successful evening: that of Giulia Gwinn. The DFB captain hit her left shoulder after a collision, remained lying on the grass with her face contorted in pain and ultimately had to be substituted in the 33rd minute. On Wednesday, FC Bayern announced “that Gwinn has dislocated his shoulder, but can initially be treated with conservative therapy.” Gwinn’s deployment in the important weeks surrounding Bayern’s Champions League semi-final against FC Barcelona (April 25th/May 3rd) is “open at this point in time”. The 26-year-old is definitely out of the international match on Saturday (6 p.m.) in Austria; Sarah Mattner-Trembleau from the U23 will take her place.

The national team has already witnessed Giulia Gwinn’s two cruciate ligament tears (2020 and 2022) as well as a torn medial ligament at the start of the 2025 European Championship, which caused her to miss the tournament. The situation in Nuremberg “was another shocking moment for us,” said Frankfurt’s Elisa Senß.