Frauen-Bundesliga, Germany's top league, features in 2011/12 the following teams: 1. FFC Frankfurt, Turbine Potsdam, FCR Duisburg, Lokomotive Leipzig, USV Jena, Wolfsburg, Hamburger SV, Bad Neuenahr, Essen-Schönebeck, Bayer Leverkusen, Freiburg, Bayern München.
Sept. 4, 2011
Bundesliga, Matchday 3: No news on top - powerhouses still don’t convince but still win
By Olaf Goldbecker
Two games were already played on Saturday. That way 1.FFC Frankfurt had the chance to put the competitors under pressure. The outcome was the same as in the previous weeks: the team needed long to get on track and clinch the win, but in the end they made it against underdogs FF USV Jena. Lira Bajramaj (51'), Ana Maria Crnogorcevic (57') and Kerstin Garefrekes (70') scored the goals in a 3-0 win.
Also, FCR Duisburg is still on track as they smashed Bayer Leverkusen, 4-1. Simone Laudehr, Mandy Islacker, and Alexandra Popp made it 3-0 after only 19 minutes. Islacker even added one after 30 against a desolate Bayer team. Eunice Beckmann (60') made the result a bit nicer for the visitors.
Turbine Potsdam followed as the third team with nine points after three games when they defeated SC Freiburg, 2-0. The attendance had to wait some time until the goals were scored. Viola Odebrecht put the ball into the net after 73 minutes, and Genoveva Anomna followed six minutes later with goal number four for her new club.
Number four in the standings is VfL Wolfsburg, who showed that the draw against Bad Neuenahr was a temporarily mishap. In what might have been considered the closest call before this matchday, Wolfsburg dominated Bayern Munich on the road and won, 3-0. Nadine Kessler and Conny Pohlers decided the game with a double strike in the 34th and 36th minutes. Anna Blässe marked the final goal of the game in the last minute. Pohlers now has four goal and is tied for first in the striker list with Potsdam’s Anomna.
Surprisingly fifth place in the standings is SG Essen-Schönebeck after a 3-2 road win at SC Bad Neuenahr. This marks SGS’ second best all time start in Bundesliga. Jessica Bade put her team up front halfway through the first half, but Marie Pyko tied after 70 minutes. Just four minutes later, the referee decided on foul as the last player of Essen’s center back, Elena Hauer, got ejected and Störzel scored on the penalty shot to give Bad Neuenahr a 2-1 lead. Another three minutes later, the short-handed team equalized by Caroline Hamann. With two minutes left on the clock, the referee rewarded Essen with a penalty kick which was as much discussed as the first one. Veteran Melanie Hoffmann took the responsibility and converted for the road win.
In a game of two teams which are expected at the bottom of the standings this season, Lokomotive Leipzig and Hamburger SV, the hosts missed to take the chance on their first Bundesliga win clearly. Marisa Ewers (53') and Marie Louise Bagehorn (57') decided the game for Hamburg with Aferdita Kameraj, scoring the final 3-0 in the last minute of the game.
Frankfurt, Potsdam, and Duisburg lead the standings with a clean sheet. Wolfsburg follows with two wins and one draw. Jena, Leipzig, and Leverkusen are still waiting for their first point, and Bad Neuenahr, with two points, for their first win.
Bundesliga, Matchday 3: No news on top - powerhouses still don’t convince but still win
By Olaf Goldbecker
Two games were already played on Saturday. That way 1.FFC Frankfurt had the chance to put the competitors under pressure. The outcome was the same as in the previous weeks: the team needed long to get on track and clinch the win, but in the end they made it against underdogs FF USV Jena. Lira Bajramaj (51'), Ana Maria Crnogorcevic (57') and Kerstin Garefrekes (70') scored the goals in a 3-0 win.
Also, FCR Duisburg is still on track as they smashed Bayer Leverkusen, 4-1. Simone Laudehr, Mandy Islacker, and Alexandra Popp made it 3-0 after only 19 minutes. Islacker even added one after 30 against a desolate Bayer team. Eunice Beckmann (60') made the result a bit nicer for the visitors.
Turbine Potsdam followed as the third team with nine points after three games when they defeated SC Freiburg, 2-0. The attendance had to wait some time until the goals were scored. Viola Odebrecht put the ball into the net after 73 minutes, and Genoveva Anomna followed six minutes later with goal number four for her new club.
Number four in the standings is VfL Wolfsburg, who showed that the draw against Bad Neuenahr was a temporarily mishap. In what might have been considered the closest call before this matchday, Wolfsburg dominated Bayern Munich on the road and won, 3-0. Nadine Kessler and Conny Pohlers decided the game with a double strike in the 34th and 36th minutes. Anna Blässe marked the final goal of the game in the last minute. Pohlers now has four goal and is tied for first in the striker list with Potsdam’s Anomna.
Surprisingly fifth place in the standings is SG Essen-Schönebeck after a 3-2 road win at SC Bad Neuenahr. This marks SGS’ second best all time start in Bundesliga. Jessica Bade put her team up front halfway through the first half, but Marie Pyko tied after 70 minutes. Just four minutes later, the referee decided on foul as the last player of Essen’s center back, Elena Hauer, got ejected and Störzel scored on the penalty shot to give Bad Neuenahr a 2-1 lead. Another three minutes later, the short-handed team equalized by Caroline Hamann. With two minutes left on the clock, the referee rewarded Essen with a penalty kick which was as much discussed as the first one. Veteran Melanie Hoffmann took the responsibility and converted for the road win.
In a game of two teams which are expected at the bottom of the standings this season, Lokomotive Leipzig and Hamburger SV, the hosts missed to take the chance on their first Bundesliga win clearly. Marisa Ewers (53') and Marie Louise Bagehorn (57') decided the game for Hamburg with Aferdita Kameraj, scoring the final 3-0 in the last minute of the game.
Frankfurt, Potsdam, and Duisburg lead the standings with a clean sheet. Wolfsburg follows with two wins and one draw. Jena, Leipzig, and Leverkusen are still waiting for their first point, and Bad Neuenahr, with two points, for their first win.
Aug. 29, 2011
Bundesliga, Matchday 2: Same procedure as every year for Wolfsburg?
By Olaf Goldbecker
As if nothing happened in the off-season: Turbine Potsdam, 1.FFC Frankfurt, and FCR Duisburg are the three teams starting into the season with two wins. Yet none of these clubs fully convinced so far.
Bayer Leverkusen – Turbine Potsdam 0:3 (0:2)
The champions had no problems to defeat Leverkusen. Yet Potsdam’s supporters were not satisfied with the performance of their team, which was rather dangerous with set pieces than with combinations. Genoveva Anomna opened the scoring midway through the first half, while Bianca Schmidt added short before halftime. Late in the game, Viola Odebrecht put her name on the scoreboard for the final strike of the game.
Lok Leipzig – 1.FFC Frankfurt 0:4 (0:1)
Also, Frankfurt is not in full swing early in the season. As last week, it took almost until halftime to score the lead by center back Saskia Bartusiak. After the break, Alexandra Krieger cared for the insurance with a cross that directly made it into the net. Bartusiak scored her second and simultaneously Frankfurt’s third defender goal, before Melanie Behringen made it 4-0.
Hamburger SV – FCR Duisburg 0:2 (0:2)
Duisburg continued like on the first matchday - again not convincing but with another win against a bottom placed team. Simone Laudehr opened the scoring already after five minutes, and talent Luisa Wensing added right before halftime after a corner kick.
SC Freiburg – Bayern München 3:1 (2:1)
Newly promoted SC Freiburg continued its good start and surprised Bayern Munich. Melanie Leupolz scored twice in the first 30 minutes to give her team a good start. Ivana Rudelic got Bayern closer, but French Marina Makanza cared for the old distance after about an hour.
VfL Wolfsburg – SC Bad Neuenahr 1:1 (0:1)
Second matchday, first disappointment. It seems as if Wolfsburg still faces the old problems despite of a remodeled roster. Ramona Petzelberger cared for an early lead for the visitors, which made Wolfsburg insecure. Especially in the second half they made lots of pressure, which resulted in Conny Pohlers’ equalizer in the 77th minute, but still Wolfsburg shows old deficits when they are forced to do the playmaking.
SG Essen-Schönebeck – FF USV Jena 1:0 (0:0)
Important win for Essen in a game between two teams who might be in the relegation battle. Both teams had issues creating chances. The defenses were secure, especially American Katarina Tarr had an excellent game for Essen as center back. In a typical scoreless draw, Essen had tremendous luck in stoppage time when a free kick found small Vanessa Martini who headed in unmarked from short distance.
Bundesliga, Matchday 2: Same procedure as every year for Wolfsburg?
By Olaf Goldbecker
As if nothing happened in the off-season: Turbine Potsdam, 1.FFC Frankfurt, and FCR Duisburg are the three teams starting into the season with two wins. Yet none of these clubs fully convinced so far.
Bayer Leverkusen – Turbine Potsdam 0:3 (0:2)
The champions had no problems to defeat Leverkusen. Yet Potsdam’s supporters were not satisfied with the performance of their team, which was rather dangerous with set pieces than with combinations. Genoveva Anomna opened the scoring midway through the first half, while Bianca Schmidt added short before halftime. Late in the game, Viola Odebrecht put her name on the scoreboard for the final strike of the game.
Lok Leipzig – 1.FFC Frankfurt 0:4 (0:1)
Also, Frankfurt is not in full swing early in the season. As last week, it took almost until halftime to score the lead by center back Saskia Bartusiak. After the break, Alexandra Krieger cared for the insurance with a cross that directly made it into the net. Bartusiak scored her second and simultaneously Frankfurt’s third defender goal, before Melanie Behringen made it 4-0.
Hamburger SV – FCR Duisburg 0:2 (0:2)
Duisburg continued like on the first matchday - again not convincing but with another win against a bottom placed team. Simone Laudehr opened the scoring already after five minutes, and talent Luisa Wensing added right before halftime after a corner kick.
SC Freiburg – Bayern München 3:1 (2:1)
Newly promoted SC Freiburg continued its good start and surprised Bayern Munich. Melanie Leupolz scored twice in the first 30 minutes to give her team a good start. Ivana Rudelic got Bayern closer, but French Marina Makanza cared for the old distance after about an hour.
VfL Wolfsburg – SC Bad Neuenahr 1:1 (0:1)
Second matchday, first disappointment. It seems as if Wolfsburg still faces the old problems despite of a remodeled roster. Ramona Petzelberger cared for an early lead for the visitors, which made Wolfsburg insecure. Especially in the second half they made lots of pressure, which resulted in Conny Pohlers’ equalizer in the 77th minute, but still Wolfsburg shows old deficits when they are forced to do the playmaking.
SG Essen-Schönebeck – FF USV Jena 1:0 (0:0)
Important win for Essen in a game between two teams who might be in the relegation battle. Both teams had issues creating chances. The defenses were secure, especially American Katarina Tarr had an excellent game for Essen as center back. In a typical scoreless draw, Essen had tremendous luck in stoppage time when a free kick found small Vanessa Martini who headed in unmarked from short distance.
Aug. 21, 2011
Bundesliga Season starts with off-field hammer: Grings leaves FCR Duisburg
By Olaf Goldbecker
FCR Duisburg opened the Bundesliga season with an easy task at home against newly promoted Lokomotive Leipzig. In front of 1,870 in the attendance, the big favorite struggled a lot, and the visitors took the lead on a goal by 16-year-old Lyn Meyer. Duisburg, starting with new acquisitions, Italian Laura Neboli and Portuguese Jacome Silva, required until the 60th minute to tie the game, on a goal by Alexandra Popp. With five minutes left on the clock, substitute player Stefanie Weichelt decided the match with the 2-1 game winner. Bigger than the result, was the postgame press conference in which the club announced that Inka Grings will leave the club. Most probable destinations are either French Olympique Lyonnais or Rossiyanka in Russia.
A quarter hour later, 1.FFC Frankfurt’s all-star selection had its first start of the season against SG Essen-Schönebeck. With Nadine Angerer, Ria Percival, Saksia Bartusiak, Saki Kumagai, Melanie Behringer, Jessica Landström, and Lira Bajramaj, they dressed seven World Cup players in their starting lineup, and added Ali Krieger, Sara Thunebro, and Kerstin Garefrekes in the course of the game. In their 3-0 win, two of the goals were scored by the non World Cup players though. Thunder and lightning helped them to get on track – after the game was stopped for 15 minutes in minute 32, it took them six minutes to score the lead, and it came from veteran Sandra Smisek. After halftime, they quickly added the other two goals by Svenja Huth and Lira Bajramaj for the win. 2,750 attended the game.
VfL Wolfsburg’s new acquisitions paid off in the first season game at USV Jena. Nadine Keßler opened the scoring in minute 12, and last year’s top striker of the league, Conny Pohlers, added a pair right before halftime and after an hour for a safe 3-0 win. Jena’s new Italian keeper Katja Schroffenegger saved a penalty kick by Navina Omilade later on.
The champion of the last three years, Turbine Potsdam, startEDs the season where they ended the last, in first place after a 4-0 win over Hamburger SV. A crowd of 2,719 saw a dominant home team, which scored the early lead by Equatorial Guinean new acquisition Genoveva Anomna. World Champion Yuki Nagasato added a quick decision just 10 minutes later and the final insurance after an hour. The last goal of the game was struck by Anomna again.
The quickest goal of the matchday was scored by Bayern Munich in their home game against Bayer Leverkusen. Ivana Rudelic only required two minutes to put the ball into the net. Bayern was superior and scored the second goal halfway through the first half by Isabel Bachor. The third and last goal of the game for a 3-0 win goes to the account of new acquisition Laura Feiersinger.
The only draw of the first match happened in the game between SC Bad Neuenahr and SC Freiburg. Freiburg, which surprisingly started without new acquisitions Chioma Igwe and Hasret Kayikci, captured a 2-0 lead by Melanie Leupholz after a quarter hour and Lydia Miraoui right after the break. Bad Neuenahr returned to the game after 72 minutes when Sara Doorsoun-Khajeh got her team on the scoreboard, before Celia Okoyino da Mbabi tied five minutes before the end of the game.
Bundesliga Season starts with off-field hammer: Grings leaves FCR Duisburg
By Olaf Goldbecker
FCR Duisburg opened the Bundesliga season with an easy task at home against newly promoted Lokomotive Leipzig. In front of 1,870 in the attendance, the big favorite struggled a lot, and the visitors took the lead on a goal by 16-year-old Lyn Meyer. Duisburg, starting with new acquisitions, Italian Laura Neboli and Portuguese Jacome Silva, required until the 60th minute to tie the game, on a goal by Alexandra Popp. With five minutes left on the clock, substitute player Stefanie Weichelt decided the match with the 2-1 game winner. Bigger than the result, was the postgame press conference in which the club announced that Inka Grings will leave the club. Most probable destinations are either French Olympique Lyonnais or Rossiyanka in Russia.
A quarter hour later, 1.FFC Frankfurt’s all-star selection had its first start of the season against SG Essen-Schönebeck. With Nadine Angerer, Ria Percival, Saksia Bartusiak, Saki Kumagai, Melanie Behringer, Jessica Landström, and Lira Bajramaj, they dressed seven World Cup players in their starting lineup, and added Ali Krieger, Sara Thunebro, and Kerstin Garefrekes in the course of the game. In their 3-0 win, two of the goals were scored by the non World Cup players though. Thunder and lightning helped them to get on track – after the game was stopped for 15 minutes in minute 32, it took them six minutes to score the lead, and it came from veteran Sandra Smisek. After halftime, they quickly added the other two goals by Svenja Huth and Lira Bajramaj for the win. 2,750 attended the game.
VfL Wolfsburg’s new acquisitions paid off in the first season game at USV Jena. Nadine Keßler opened the scoring in minute 12, and last year’s top striker of the league, Conny Pohlers, added a pair right before halftime and after an hour for a safe 3-0 win. Jena’s new Italian keeper Katja Schroffenegger saved a penalty kick by Navina Omilade later on.
The champion of the last three years, Turbine Potsdam, startEDs the season where they ended the last, in first place after a 4-0 win over Hamburger SV. A crowd of 2,719 saw a dominant home team, which scored the early lead by Equatorial Guinean new acquisition Genoveva Anomna. World Champion Yuki Nagasato added a quick decision just 10 minutes later and the final insurance after an hour. The last goal of the game was struck by Anomna again.
The quickest goal of the matchday was scored by Bayern Munich in their home game against Bayer Leverkusen. Ivana Rudelic only required two minutes to put the ball into the net. Bayern was superior and scored the second goal halfway through the first half by Isabel Bachor. The third and last goal of the game for a 3-0 win goes to the account of new acquisition Laura Feiersinger.
The only draw of the first match happened in the game between SC Bad Neuenahr and SC Freiburg. Freiburg, which surprisingly started without new acquisitions Chioma Igwe and Hasret Kayikci, captured a 2-0 lead by Melanie Leupholz after a quarter hour and Lydia Miraoui right after the break. Bad Neuenahr returned to the game after 72 minutes when Sara Doorsoun-Khajeh got her team on the scoreboard, before Celia Okoyino da Mbabi tied five minutes before the end of the game.
Aug. 17, 2011
Bundesliga Preview: Frankfurt invests to win all titles
By Olaf Goldbecker
Germany gets ready to start season one after a World Cup in the country, which ended as tremendous success for the game and the attendance, but with a big failure for the domestic team. It will be interesting to see the effect on the league in the upcoming months. Most expect a small raise in attendance, but no major changes. Most clubs are not on a professional standard, many venues are not on a good level, and the level of the league is way too unbalanced.
Title Contenders
1.FFC Frankfurt is the club with the highest budget in the league. After a drought since 2008, they were longing for the titles already in the last years, and the national cup win does not satisfy their own expectations. There is no doubt that Frankfurt wants to win the national championship, the cup competition and the Champions League. For this, the club invested heavily once again. World Champion Saki Kumagai and New Zealand NT player Ria Percival were signed for the defense. German star, and the highest paid player of the league, Lira Barjamaj, is supposed to be the new face of the club. German NT player Kim Kulig – out with torn ACL for the next months – and Swiss forward Ana Maria Crnogorcevic complete the investments. No team has a roster with similar quality, alone six World Cup players compete for four spots in the backline. What could stop Frankfurt? A narrow offense with just three nominal forwards, which all yet have to prove that they can convince on this level; on defense the bigger problem will be to keep every quality player happy. Certainly there also is a high pressure on the team as titles are expected
Champion 1.FFC Turbine Potsdam will be the main challenger for Frankfurt. Potsdam won the title in the previous three years and are the Champions League as well as national cup runners up – there is not a lot more to say about the quality. The key question is how the team will be able to compensate the loss of creative engine Lira Bajramaj. The club invested in international quality. Dutch Chantal de Ridder, Swedish talent Antonia Göransson and top forward Genoveva Anomna care for offensive threat. Certainly the club can always rely on detecting own youth players who are used to play the system, which cares for quick integration.
Chasing Teams
Not expected in the title race but clearly ahead of the quality of the other teams are VfL Wolfsburg and FCR Duisburg. VfL Wolfsburg can rely on a very professional setup and finally wants to close the gap after disappointing results in the recent years. Big names were signed, such as top striker Conny Pohlers from Frankfurt, Josephine Henning and Nadine Kessler from Potsdam, German NT player Lena Goessling from Bad Neuenahr – this has to pay off. Yet while Wolfsburg can defeat all teams, they will still suffer upsets against defensive-minded smaller teams as they still have playmaking issues and the defense is not on top level.
While Wolfsburg is a rising team, FCR 2001 Duisburg rather is on the way down from the top. Actually they played a solid season after finishing third and reaching the semifinal of the Champions League. Yet chaos was ruling off the field. Firing Coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg left more questions than it gave answers, and many players expressed being unhappy. Due to financial issues, mostly unknown players were signed. Annemieke Kiesel and Femke Maes both retired, keeper Uschi Holl left, as well as several talents. The first team still has enough quality players starting from Annike Krahn over Alex Popp and Simone Laudehr up to Inka Grings. Even Linda Bresonik stays after she announced to leave just weeks before, so the first team will still be a force, but as soon as one of the top players is injured they will have issues.
Safe Midfield
FC Bayern Munich had some promising years including an “almost championship”, yet the recent development was negative. Rank 5 was OK, but the distance to the top teams was very big, and it will continue to be like this. The Bavarians signed Austrian top talent Laura Feiersinger but lost some veterans. They will not get closer to the top teams with their club politics. Bayern’s men’s team is not interested in investing, and so the women’s team has to live with mediocrity in the future since talents only are not enough.
Despite of losing national team player Lena Goessling, SC Bad Neuenahr should be able to stay in the safe midfield of the league. With Almuth Schult they signed a good keeper between the pipes, and if talent Sofia Nati is willing to invest some work she can be a strong asset for the club. It will have to be seen how New Zealand national team players Sarah Gregorius and Katie Hoyle will get along, but the star of the team is Celia Okoyino da Mbabi. With this roster, it should be possible to stay in the upper half for new coach Colin Bell
Another team that could make it to the secure midfield zone is Bayer 04 Leverkusen. The team did not lose any key players and signed two prospects of FCR Duisburg, Turid Knaak and Marina Hegering. Bayer 04 offers a good and professional environment for the team in terms of practice. Unfortunately they play their games on a field which is not worth being called a stadium. If the team develops adequately they can have a safe run and avoid relegation early. The team can only get issues when they get in trouble since they lack experience.
Relegation Fight
While Bayer Leverkusen can possibly stay out of it, there is another team on a similar level, returning SC Freiburg. The team from the southwestern tip of the nation has a bunch of very young and promising talents, and next to veteran captain Kerstin Boschert relies on internationals to reach their aim. Chioma Igwe is a WPS proven defense player, Swiss defense signing Caroline Abbé can make an impact, and hopes rely on forward talent Hasret Kayikci who signed from FCR Duisburg. While the defense seems set, Freiburg might have trouble in the offense, a real goal getter who promises 10 goals a season is missing. If everything works well, Freiburg can stay out of relegation trouble but they cannot expect this.
Relegation fight proven SG Essen-Schönebeck will find themselves back in the zone they are used to. The defense is alright after national team backup keeper Uschi Holl was signed from Duisburg to replace injured Lisa Weiss. The center backs Elena Hauer and Katarina Tarr are a proven unit, yet the number of quality players is thin. The offense is absolutely depending on veteran Melanie Hoffmann, known from WUSA club Philadelphia Charge, and meanwhile 36 years old. Essen has many players who can perform well on good days, but are not necessarily on permanent Bundesliga level – especially the offense is lacking quality. It can be a tough season for SGS but they have chances to stay over the line.
One club which usually is not found in these regions but who will have to expect a tough season is Hamburger SV. With the men’s team making major deficits, the club has to save money in all sections. Hamburg’s top three players, outstanding Kim Kulig, top striker Ana Maria Crnogorcevic, and Swedish talent Antonia Göransson, left the club. Most promising new signings are Potsdam’s second line players Jessica Wich and Marie-Louise Bagehorn. Biggest asset for the club is Coach Achim Feifel, who has proved to make a team better in the course of the season and often finished way beyond expectations with his team – this ability will be much needed this year, otherwise Hamburg might face a tough awakening at the end of the season.
The Coach is the star counts for FF USV Jena. The East Germans picked up Duisburg’s ex-coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg. The former world class player has to compensate the loss of star striker Genoveva Anomna and tries to do this with New Zealand striker Amber Hearn. Yet this change alone will not keep the team in the league. Anomna was Jena’s life insurance in the recent years, in exaggerated terms eight players defended, Julia Arnold played midfield and Anomna was the offense. Voss-Tecklenburg will have to change the system away from the “one-woman-show” – yet the offense quality will be a big issue during the season.
Newly promoted 1.FC Lokomotive Leipzig is the third team of the former GDR in Women’s Bundesliga. It is their first stint in the upper league, and they require luck if they want to extend it by another year. New Coach Claudia von Lanken brought some players from Hamburg (Reserves) with her, including top striker Kathrin Patzke but she will stay and practice in Hamburg most of the time and join the team short before the games – surely no ideal constellation. New keeper Gaelle Thalmann was signed from Switzerland but already did not make the lineup in her first two tries in Bundesliga. Also, most other signings were no number one choices in their clubs, so that the roster does not seem to be competitive for the top league.
Bundesliga Preview: Frankfurt invests to win all titles
By Olaf Goldbecker
Germany gets ready to start season one after a World Cup in the country, which ended as tremendous success for the game and the attendance, but with a big failure for the domestic team. It will be interesting to see the effect on the league in the upcoming months. Most expect a small raise in attendance, but no major changes. Most clubs are not on a professional standard, many venues are not on a good level, and the level of the league is way too unbalanced.
Title Contenders
1.FFC Frankfurt is the club with the highest budget in the league. After a drought since 2008, they were longing for the titles already in the last years, and the national cup win does not satisfy their own expectations. There is no doubt that Frankfurt wants to win the national championship, the cup competition and the Champions League. For this, the club invested heavily once again. World Champion Saki Kumagai and New Zealand NT player Ria Percival were signed for the defense. German star, and the highest paid player of the league, Lira Barjamaj, is supposed to be the new face of the club. German NT player Kim Kulig – out with torn ACL for the next months – and Swiss forward Ana Maria Crnogorcevic complete the investments. No team has a roster with similar quality, alone six World Cup players compete for four spots in the backline. What could stop Frankfurt? A narrow offense with just three nominal forwards, which all yet have to prove that they can convince on this level; on defense the bigger problem will be to keep every quality player happy. Certainly there also is a high pressure on the team as titles are expected
Champion 1.FFC Turbine Potsdam will be the main challenger for Frankfurt. Potsdam won the title in the previous three years and are the Champions League as well as national cup runners up – there is not a lot more to say about the quality. The key question is how the team will be able to compensate the loss of creative engine Lira Bajramaj. The club invested in international quality. Dutch Chantal de Ridder, Swedish talent Antonia Göransson and top forward Genoveva Anomna care for offensive threat. Certainly the club can always rely on detecting own youth players who are used to play the system, which cares for quick integration.
Chasing Teams
Not expected in the title race but clearly ahead of the quality of the other teams are VfL Wolfsburg and FCR Duisburg. VfL Wolfsburg can rely on a very professional setup and finally wants to close the gap after disappointing results in the recent years. Big names were signed, such as top striker Conny Pohlers from Frankfurt, Josephine Henning and Nadine Kessler from Potsdam, German NT player Lena Goessling from Bad Neuenahr – this has to pay off. Yet while Wolfsburg can defeat all teams, they will still suffer upsets against defensive-minded smaller teams as they still have playmaking issues and the defense is not on top level.
While Wolfsburg is a rising team, FCR 2001 Duisburg rather is on the way down from the top. Actually they played a solid season after finishing third and reaching the semifinal of the Champions League. Yet chaos was ruling off the field. Firing Coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg left more questions than it gave answers, and many players expressed being unhappy. Due to financial issues, mostly unknown players were signed. Annemieke Kiesel and Femke Maes both retired, keeper Uschi Holl left, as well as several talents. The first team still has enough quality players starting from Annike Krahn over Alex Popp and Simone Laudehr up to Inka Grings. Even Linda Bresonik stays after she announced to leave just weeks before, so the first team will still be a force, but as soon as one of the top players is injured they will have issues.
Safe Midfield
FC Bayern Munich had some promising years including an “almost championship”, yet the recent development was negative. Rank 5 was OK, but the distance to the top teams was very big, and it will continue to be like this. The Bavarians signed Austrian top talent Laura Feiersinger but lost some veterans. They will not get closer to the top teams with their club politics. Bayern’s men’s team is not interested in investing, and so the women’s team has to live with mediocrity in the future since talents only are not enough.
Despite of losing national team player Lena Goessling, SC Bad Neuenahr should be able to stay in the safe midfield of the league. With Almuth Schult they signed a good keeper between the pipes, and if talent Sofia Nati is willing to invest some work she can be a strong asset for the club. It will have to be seen how New Zealand national team players Sarah Gregorius and Katie Hoyle will get along, but the star of the team is Celia Okoyino da Mbabi. With this roster, it should be possible to stay in the upper half for new coach Colin Bell
Another team that could make it to the secure midfield zone is Bayer 04 Leverkusen. The team did not lose any key players and signed two prospects of FCR Duisburg, Turid Knaak and Marina Hegering. Bayer 04 offers a good and professional environment for the team in terms of practice. Unfortunately they play their games on a field which is not worth being called a stadium. If the team develops adequately they can have a safe run and avoid relegation early. The team can only get issues when they get in trouble since they lack experience.
Relegation Fight
While Bayer Leverkusen can possibly stay out of it, there is another team on a similar level, returning SC Freiburg. The team from the southwestern tip of the nation has a bunch of very young and promising talents, and next to veteran captain Kerstin Boschert relies on internationals to reach their aim. Chioma Igwe is a WPS proven defense player, Swiss defense signing Caroline Abbé can make an impact, and hopes rely on forward talent Hasret Kayikci who signed from FCR Duisburg. While the defense seems set, Freiburg might have trouble in the offense, a real goal getter who promises 10 goals a season is missing. If everything works well, Freiburg can stay out of relegation trouble but they cannot expect this.
Relegation fight proven SG Essen-Schönebeck will find themselves back in the zone they are used to. The defense is alright after national team backup keeper Uschi Holl was signed from Duisburg to replace injured Lisa Weiss. The center backs Elena Hauer and Katarina Tarr are a proven unit, yet the number of quality players is thin. The offense is absolutely depending on veteran Melanie Hoffmann, known from WUSA club Philadelphia Charge, and meanwhile 36 years old. Essen has many players who can perform well on good days, but are not necessarily on permanent Bundesliga level – especially the offense is lacking quality. It can be a tough season for SGS but they have chances to stay over the line.
One club which usually is not found in these regions but who will have to expect a tough season is Hamburger SV. With the men’s team making major deficits, the club has to save money in all sections. Hamburg’s top three players, outstanding Kim Kulig, top striker Ana Maria Crnogorcevic, and Swedish talent Antonia Göransson, left the club. Most promising new signings are Potsdam’s second line players Jessica Wich and Marie-Louise Bagehorn. Biggest asset for the club is Coach Achim Feifel, who has proved to make a team better in the course of the season and often finished way beyond expectations with his team – this ability will be much needed this year, otherwise Hamburg might face a tough awakening at the end of the season.
The Coach is the star counts for FF USV Jena. The East Germans picked up Duisburg’s ex-coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg. The former world class player has to compensate the loss of star striker Genoveva Anomna and tries to do this with New Zealand striker Amber Hearn. Yet this change alone will not keep the team in the league. Anomna was Jena’s life insurance in the recent years, in exaggerated terms eight players defended, Julia Arnold played midfield and Anomna was the offense. Voss-Tecklenburg will have to change the system away from the “one-woman-show” – yet the offense quality will be a big issue during the season.
Newly promoted 1.FC Lokomotive Leipzig is the third team of the former GDR in Women’s Bundesliga. It is their first stint in the upper league, and they require luck if they want to extend it by another year. New Coach Claudia von Lanken brought some players from Hamburg (Reserves) with her, including top striker Kathrin Patzke but she will stay and practice in Hamburg most of the time and join the team short before the games – surely no ideal constellation. New keeper Gaelle Thalmann was signed from Switzerland but already did not make the lineup in her first two tries in Bundesliga. Also, most other signings were no number one choices in their clubs, so that the roster does not seem to be competitive for the top league.
Aug. 12, 2011
German star Birgit Prinz retires
Birgit Prinz, one of the best women's footballers in the history of the game announced Friday her retirement. Prinz, a three-time FIFA World Player of the Year (2003, 04, 05), played her final games at this summer's Women's World Cup in Germany where she made two appearances. Prinz finishes her international career as the most-capped national team player in Germany with 214 appearances and with an astounding 128 goals. Prinz played her final matches in Bundesliga with her longtime club FFC Frankfurt during the 2010/11 season. She finished that campaign with 23 goals in 18 appearances. She did not play for Frankfurt this past season as she spent the months training with Germany in prepartion for the World Cup.
Throughout her international career, Prinz played on two Women's World Cup championship teams (2003, 2007), won three Olympic medals and five European championships. The 33-year-old former captain of Germany played for FFC Frankfurt since 2002. Prior to that, Prinz played one season in Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) in the U.S. with the Carolina Courage, helping the Courage win the 2002 Founders Cup in a year she scored 12 goals in 15 games. Before coming to the states to play for Carolina, Prinz suited up for Frankfurt from 1998 to 2002. She was named Germany Footballer of the Year each year from 2001 through 2008.
German star Birgit Prinz retires
Birgit Prinz, one of the best women's footballers in the history of the game announced Friday her retirement. Prinz, a three-time FIFA World Player of the Year (2003, 04, 05), played her final games at this summer's Women's World Cup in Germany where she made two appearances. Prinz finishes her international career as the most-capped national team player in Germany with 214 appearances and with an astounding 128 goals. Prinz played her final matches in Bundesliga with her longtime club FFC Frankfurt during the 2010/11 season. She finished that campaign with 23 goals in 18 appearances. She did not play for Frankfurt this past season as she spent the months training with Germany in prepartion for the World Cup.
Throughout her international career, Prinz played on two Women's World Cup championship teams (2003, 2007), won three Olympic medals and five European championships. The 33-year-old former captain of Germany played for FFC Frankfurt since 2002. Prior to that, Prinz played one season in Women's United Soccer Association (WUSA) in the U.S. with the Carolina Courage, helping the Courage win the 2002 Founders Cup in a year she scored 12 goals in 15 games. Before coming to the states to play for Carolina, Prinz suited up for Frankfurt from 1998 to 2002. She was named Germany Footballer of the Year each year from 2001 through 2008.
Aug. 6, 2011
Ria Percival: "I have always wanted to play in Germany"
After her performance at the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup, 21-year-old New Zealand midfielder/defender Ria Percival attracted the attention of European clubs. Last week, she chose to play in Bundesliga, signing a two-year deal with FFC Frankfurt.
"For me, I have always wanted to play in Germany in the Bundesliga. It has always been my dream to play there," Percival said in an interview with Our Game. "After the World Cup, I was talking with a few clubs, and then FFC Frankfurt asked me to do a weeks trial with them after the World Cup. So from the World Cup, I (did) a weeks trial with the club, and they offered me a contract"
At the 2011 Women's World Cup, Percival played in three matches, starting two. She made her debut with the full squad at the 2007 World Cup qualifiers and then played all three games at the 2007 Women's World Cup in China. She played six matches in the 2006 and 2008 U-20 World Cups combined. She also played in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Percival said she's looking forward to joining her first European club. She previously played for the Ottawa Fury (Canada) and FC Indiana (U.S.).
"Hearing a lot about the club and their achievements, I jumped at the opportunity to be playing and training with the best players in the world, and how much i could learn from them," she said. "And also having a really good coach and coaching staff from my trial week, I felt a good vibe with it all. I think playing in the Wolrd Cup had a big part to play in me coming to Germany because all the coaches from all the teams were there watching the games."
Frankfurt's Bundesliga season opens Aug. 21, against Essen-Schönebeck.
Ria Percival: "I have always wanted to play in Germany"
After her performance at the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup, 21-year-old New Zealand midfielder/defender Ria Percival attracted the attention of European clubs. Last week, she chose to play in Bundesliga, signing a two-year deal with FFC Frankfurt.
"For me, I have always wanted to play in Germany in the Bundesliga. It has always been my dream to play there," Percival said in an interview with Our Game. "After the World Cup, I was talking with a few clubs, and then FFC Frankfurt asked me to do a weeks trial with them after the World Cup. So from the World Cup, I (did) a weeks trial with the club, and they offered me a contract"
At the 2011 Women's World Cup, Percival played in three matches, starting two. She made her debut with the full squad at the 2007 World Cup qualifiers and then played all three games at the 2007 Women's World Cup in China. She played six matches in the 2006 and 2008 U-20 World Cups combined. She also played in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Percival said she's looking forward to joining her first European club. She previously played for the Ottawa Fury (Canada) and FC Indiana (U.S.).
"Hearing a lot about the club and their achievements, I jumped at the opportunity to be playing and training with the best players in the world, and how much i could learn from them," she said. "And also having a really good coach and coaching staff from my trial week, I felt a good vibe with it all. I think playing in the Wolrd Cup had a big part to play in me coming to Germany because all the coaches from all the teams were there watching the games."
Frankfurt's Bundesliga season opens Aug. 21, against Essen-Schönebeck.
Aug. 5, 2011
Ali Krieger signs two-year deal with 1. FFC Frankfurt
On Wednesday, Aug. 3, FFC Frankfurt Manager Siegfried Dietrich announced that Ali Krieger would re-sign with Frankfurt. Today, it became official. Krieger's deal will take her through June 30, 2013, according to a statement from Krieger and from Siegfried, both commenting to German media.
Ali Krieger signs two-year deal with 1. FFC Frankfurt
On Wednesday, Aug. 3, FFC Frankfurt Manager Siegfried Dietrich announced that Ali Krieger would re-sign with Frankfurt. Today, it became official. Krieger's deal will take her through June 30, 2013, according to a statement from Krieger and from Siegfried, both commenting to German media.
