Midfielder Elisa Senß then made him smile during a lively discussion. Wück first folded his hands to insist, then moved them back and forth in front of him in response to a counterargument. "No, no, stay! Stand still," could just about be deciphered without lip-reading lessons. But Wück only really laughed when Wolfgang Petry's speech to the team circle echoed through Karlsruhe's Wildpark Stadium. It started with “Falling in love, lost, forgetting, forgiving”, which will forever be linked to this tournament in this group thanks to the appearance in the team camp before the European Championship 2025 - the players had organized the exclusive concert as a surprise for Petry fan Wück - and will bring back good memories.
After all, the European Championships had been successful for the DFB women; it was only in the semifinals against the world champions from Spain that it ended. This reference was apt, because the last thing that stuck with us from that summer in Switzerland was how the Germans dealt with injuries and setbacks. And that's what mattered again on Friday - with the side effect that the national coach made discoveries and rediscoveries like his colleague Jürgen Klopp, even without a 44-man XXL squad.
Wück had set goals for this and the following international match on Tuesday against Japan (5.45 p.m., ARD), which should also set the path in the coming months. “The most important thing is that we want to develop further,” he recently explained: “I want us to think in details, to work in details.” This will take longer and longer and will be “immensely difficult” to implement because the players come from so many different clubs. But after the performances that brought a place in the final of the Nations League in 2025 after the European Championship semi-finals (again Spain was stronger) and qualification for the World Cup in 2026, the next level should be reached for a successful World Cup in 2027. After the win against Australia, Wück said on ZDF: "Above all, we don't want to become dependent on injuries so that if someone breaks down, we have to think about changing the system. We want to be so flexible that we can react well to eventualities."
“She will put a lot of pressure on the other center forwards we have in the squad,” says the national coach about Melissa Kössler
The list of failures was long at the start. Captain Giulia Gwinn, goalkeeper Ann-Katrin Berger, Kathrin Hendrich, Rebecca Knaak, Bibiane Schulze Solano, Vivien Endemann, Selina Cerci, Larissa Mühlhaus and Lea Schüller were missing due to injuries, injuries or apologies. Which led the national coach to say something almost poetic: “It’s no secret that not everything is going the way we imagine it would in a rose-colored sky.” Sarai Linder (VfL Wolfsburg), Nicole Anyomi (London City Lionesses) and the 18-year-old Luzie Zähringer from VfB Stuttgart moved up. And at least the sky didn't turn any darker; rather, a strip of light formed on the horizon.
Against physically strong Australians - finalists in the Asian Championships and with Sam Kerr in their ranks, one of the strongest offensive players in the world - the DFB women largely remained in control. Even without the lack of prominent names, the starting eleven had a certain amount of experience and coordination. The only new players were goalkeeper Ena Mahmutovic, Cora Zicai on the wing and striker Melissa Kössler. The Germans kept having chances until Kössler brought the attacks to an end in the 23rd and 30th minutes. For the 26-year-old from US club Denver Summit, it was her first DFB goal in her fifth international match.
She used her appearance to present herself as an alternative in a position that Wück described as “still expandable at the moment”. Balls defended and distributed, passable, won duels, scored goals - the national coach praised Kössler's range: "She will put a lot of pressure on the other center forwards we have in the squad." Anyomi and Schüller are particularly likely to be affected by this. Wück said he wanted a “jack of all trades” in this position, “but I also know that such players are very rare.” He didn't hide the fact that there is a footballer who meets his requirements: "I personally hope that Giovanna Hoffmann comes back at some point because she embodies exactly that." The 28-year-old suffered a torn cruciate ligament in October 2025 and had to have another knee operation in July.
Although he explicitly did not want to announce a World Cup casting, Wück took the opportunity to make seven changes after the break. The 53-year-old brought, among others, debutante Lisa Baum (Arsenal FC) and defender Marie Müller (Portland Thorns FC), who only made her debut in June and impressed once again. “We knew that we had potential on the bench, that we could actually bring anyone in and even change positions,” said Wück about the depth of the squad: “That’s exactly what we wanted to try out.” Zicai and Carlotta Wamser, who was defending behind, played in a 4-2-3-1 system, first on the right and then on the left, Müller also moved forward at times and Brand sometimes let himself fall a little. And like Kössler, Zicai took advantage of her chance: many moves went her way, the 21-year-old from VfL Wolfsburg (four goals and two assists in six Bundesliga games) drove the game forward.
If it hadn't been for the avoidable mistakes, lack of concentration and coordination difficulties in the second half, Wück might have laughed before the Petry music. But the Australians had some top-class chances, Mahmutovic was able to prove himself - but the DFB keeper couldn't get close to the shots from Samantha Kerr (45th + 1) and Holly McNamara (90th + 2). Baum, Anyomi, Zicai and Linda Dallmann, who was once again noticeably spinning, missed such good opportunities in the final phase that a corner was needed for the next goals from Camilla Küver (83') and Sjoeke Nüsken (90'+4).
This was also a reminder that, despite all the attention to detail, the German national team should continue to devote itself to some fundamental elements until the World Cup - on offense and defense. At least the national coach doesn't have to worry deeply about the squad.
