Latest news with #Wueck

Kuwait Times
6 days ago
- Sport
- Kuwait Times
Women's Euro exit shows Germany battling to keep pace
ZURICH: Germany's midfielder #08 Sydney Lohmann (left), Germany's defender #04 Rebecca Knaak (second left), Germany's midfielder #09 Sjoeke Nuesken (second right) and Germany's midfielder #06 Janina Minge (right) react at the end of the UEFA Women's Euro 2025 semi-final football match on July 23, 2025.-- AFP BERLIN: A courageous German performance in their 1-0 Women's Euro semi-final defeat by world champions Spain means they leave Switzerland with heads high, but the once-dominant team need to find a cutting attacking edge to keep up with the best. Spain playmaker Aitana Bonmati proved to be the difference, conjuring up a superb winner in extra time. Though Christian Wueck's young side performed well on the night, they lacked a truly world-class attacking talent to turn a game in their favor at such a high level. 'We have to evolve, we have to improve, we had phases of ball possession today that we simply did not exploit well, and those are areas where we need to improve, especially in the youth system, so that we can develop well-trained players for the Bundesliga,' Wueck told reporters. 'Also (we need to) perform better in those phases of ball possession that were not well-executed today, especially at that level. That is part of being a top team, and of course we are still lacking in comparison to Spain and England.' Spain face England in Sunday's final. Eight-time champions Germany have not won the tournament since 2013 in Stockholm, and in the meantime they have been reined in and passed by as other countries pour money into the development of the women's game. The 2013 victory was built on the back of the stunning goalkeeping of Nadine Angerer, who saved two penalties in the final against Norway, and the 2025 squad looked to have a similar net-minding talisman in the shape of Ann-Katrin Berger, who pulled off a miraculous save in their quarter-final against France to prevent an own goal. Berger followed that up with a stellar performance in the penalty shootout win over the French that followed, but on Wednesday she was caught out by Bonmati's lightning shot from a tight angle to her uncovered near post that ended up as the only goal of the game. Though Berger took the blame for the defeat, it was not solely hers to bear. Germany had plenty of chances, with Klara Buehl superb down the left, but they lacked the killer instinct in front of goal that Bonmati displayed. All in all, the Germans displayed plenty of promise as they beat Poland, Denmark and the French in Switzerland, with the only blemish a shock 4-1 defeat by Sweden in which they had a player sent off in the first half. Though some of his choices have been questioned, Wueck says his focus on young players is paying off. 'I recently read that the (German Football Association) DFB is miles behind the top nations, and three days later I read that we are in the semi-finals. So maybe the Germans need to learn a little bit that we do everything together, that we want the best for the German nation,' he said. — Reuters


New Straits Times
6 days ago
- Sport
- New Straits Times
Women's Euro exit shows once-mighty Germany battling to keep pace
A COURAGEOUS German performance in their 1-0 Women's Euro semi-final defeat by world champions Spain means they leave Switzerland with heads high, but the once-dominant team need to find a cutting attacking edge to keep up with the best. Spain playmaker Aitana Bonmati proved to be the difference, conjuring up a superb winner in extra time. Though Christian Wueck's young side performed well on the night, they lacked a truly world-class attacking talent to turn a game in their favour at such a high level. "We have to evolve, we have to improve, we had phases of ball possession today that we simply did not exploit well, and those are areas where we need to improve, especially in the youth system, so that we can develop well-trained players for the Bundesliga," Wueck told reporters. "Also (we need to) perform better in those phases of ball possession that were not well-executed today, especially at that level. That is part of being a top team, and of course we are still lacking in comparison to Spain and England." Spain face England in Sunday's final. Eight-time champions Germany have not won the tournament since 2013 in Stockholm, and in the meantime they have been reined in and passed by as other countries pour money into the development of the women's game. The 2013 victory was built on the back of the stunning goalkeeping of Nadine Angerer, who saved two penalties in the final against Norway, and the 2025 squad looked to have a similar net-minding talisman in the shape of Ann-Katrin Berger, who pulled off a miraculous save in their quarter-final against France to prevent an own goal. Berger followed that up with a stellar performance in the penalty shootout win over the French that followed, but on Wednesday she was caught out by Bonmati's lightning shot from a tight angle to her uncovered near post that ended up as the only goal of the game. Though Berger took the blame for the defeat, it was not solely hers to bear. Germany had plenty of chances, with Klara Buehl superb down the left, but they lacked the killer instinct in front of goal that Bonmati displayed. All in all, the Germans displayed plenty of promise as they beat Poland, Denmark and the French in Switzerland, with the only blemish a shock 4-1 defeat by Sweden in which they had a player sent off in the first half. Though some of his choices have been questioned, Wueck says his focus on young players is paying off. "I recently read that the (German Football Association) DFB is miles behind the top nations, and three days later I read that we are in the semi-finals. So maybe the Germans need to learn a little bit that we do everything together, that we want the best for the German nation," he said. — REUTERS


The Star
6 days ago
- Sport
- The Star
Soccer-Women's Euro exit shows once-mighty Germany battling to keep pace
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - UEFA Women's Euro 2025 - Semi Final - Germany v Spain - Stadion Letzigrund, Zurich, Switzerland - July 23, 2025 Germany's Jule Brand in action with Spain's Patri Guijarro REUTERS/Piroschka Van De Wouw/File Photo (Reuters) -A courageous German performance in their 1-0 Women's Euro semi-final defeat by world champions Spain means they leave Switzerland with heads high, but the once-dominant team need to find a cutting attacking edge to keep up with the best. Spain playmaker Aitana Bonmati proved to be the difference, conjuring up a superb winner in extra time. Though Christian Wueck's young side performed well on the night, they lackeda truly world-class attacking talent to turn a game in their favour at such a high level. "We have to evolve, we have to improve, we had phases of ball possession today that we simply did not exploit well, and those are areas where we need to improve, especially in the youth system, so that we can develop well-trained players for the Bundesliga," Wueck told reporters. "Also (we need to) perform better in those phases of ball possession that were not well-executed today, especially at that level. That is part of being a top team, and of course we are still lacking in comparison to Spain and England." Spain face England in Sunday's final. Eight-time champions Germany have not won the tournament since 2013 in Stockholm, and in the meantime they have been reined in and passed by as other countries pour money into the development of the women's game. The 2013 victory was built on the back of the stunning goalkeeping of Nadine Angerer, who saved two penalties in the final against Norway, and the 2025 squad looked to have a similar net-minding talisman in the shape of Ann-Katrin Berger, who pulled off a miraculous save in their quarter-final against France to prevent an own goal. Berger followed that up with a stellar performance in the penalty shootout win over the French that followed, but on Wednesday she was caught out by Bonmati's lightning shot from a tight angle to her uncovered near post that ended up as the only goal of the game. Though Berger took the blame for the defeat, it was not solely hers to bear. Germany had plenty of chances, with Klara Buehl superb down the left, but they lacked the killer instinct in front of goal that Bonmati displayed. All in all, the Germans displayed plenty of promise as they beat Poland, Denmark and the French in Switzerland, with the only blemish a shock 4-1 defeat by Sweden in which they had a player sent off in the first half. Though some of his choices have been questioned, Wueck says his focus on young players is paying off. "I recently read that the (German Football Association) DFB is miles behind the top nations, and three days later I read that we are in the semi-finals. So maybe the Germans need to learn a little bit that we do everything together, that we want the best for the German nation," he said. (Reporting by Philip O'Connor; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)

Straits Times
6 days ago
- Sport
- Straits Times
Women's Euro exit shows once-mighty Germany battling to keep pace
A courageous German performance in their 1-0 Women's Euro semi-final defeat by world champions Spain means they leave Switzerland with heads high, but the once-dominant team need to find a cutting attacking edge to keep up with the best. Spain playmaker Aitana Bonmati proved to be the difference, conjuring up a superb winner in extra time. Though Christian Wueck's young side performed well on the night, they lacked a truly world-class attacking talent to turn a game in their favour at such a high level. "We have to evolve, we have to improve, we had phases of ball possession today that we simply did not exploit well, and those are areas where we need to improve, especially in the youth system, so that we can develop well-trained players for the Bundesliga," Wueck told reporters. "Also (we need to) perform better in those phases of ball possession that were not well-executed today, especially at that level. That is part of being a top team, and of course we are still lacking in comparison to Spain and England." Spain face England in Sunday's final. Eight-time champions Germany have not won the tournament since 2013 in Stockholm, and in the meantime they have been reined in and passed by as other countries pour money into the development of the women's game. The 2013 victory was built on the back of the stunning goalkeeping of Nadine Angerer, who saved two penalties in the final against Norway, and the 2025 squad looked to have a similar net-minding talisman in the shape of Ann-Katrin Berger, who pulled off a miraculous save in their quarter-final against France to prevent an own goal. Berger followed that up with a stellar performance in the penalty shootout win over the French that followed, but on Wednesday she was caught out by Bonmati's lightning shot from a tight angle to her uncovered near post that ended up as the only goal of the game. Though Berger took the blame for the defeat, it was not solely hers to bear. Germany had plenty of chances, with Klara Buehl superb down the left, but they lacked the killer instinct in front of goal that Bonmati displayed. All in all, the Germans displayed plenty of promise as they beat Poland, Denmark and the French in Switzerland, with the only blemish a shock 4-1 defeat by Sweden in which they had a player sent off in the first half. Though some of his choices have been questioned, Wueck says his focus on young players is paying off. "I recently read that the (German Football Association) DFB is miles behind the top nations, and three days later I read that we are in the semi-finals. So maybe the Germans need to learn a little bit that we do everything together, that we want the best for the German nation," he said. REUTERS


The Sun
7 days ago
- Sport
- The Sun
Germany's women's football team optimistic despite Euro semi-final loss
GERMANY'S players and coach Christian Wueck said their team would continue to develop and would come back stronger after their extra-time defeat to Spain in the UEFA Women's Euros semi-final. Barcelona's Aitana Bonmati struck in the 113th minute to break German hearts at Zurich's Letzigrund stadium on Wednesday. 'I am proud of the team, and yes, we will continue from here,' Wueck said. 'It was another setback, but I believe we can build on that and we will now try to carry that on in the Nations League.' Germany had exceeded expectations by holding out against World Champions Spain for so long, Wueck said. 'And I believe that the development we have started is the right one and we stand behind it 100%,' he added. Defender Rebecca Knaak said the performance showed her team was on the right track. 'We also showed today that we could play with a bit more courage, a bit more self-confidence, even against Spain, because of course we defended a lot, but we also wanted to set the tone in terms of play,' Knaak said. 'We showed what we could do against world-class players. I'm so proud of the girls,' Knaak said. Teammate Sara Daebritz said the team was disappointed to concede such a late goal, dashing the team's dream of making the final, where Spain will now meet England. Still the team has 'a very promising future,' Daebritz said. 'We have a lot of young players in our ranks, a lot of players who haven't played that many international matches yet, but who have really played an outstanding tournament here,' she said. 'And we'll keep going, we'll keep working hard on ourselves and we'll come back stronger.' - Reuters