Christian Wück (51) and his assistant coaches Maren Meinert and Saskia Bartusiak have begun their tenures at the Germany women's national team. Wück was introduced as new head coach on the Germany women's national team on Friday during a press conference at the DFB-Campus in Frankfurt am Main. "I am so happy that this faith has been put in me," he said. "It’s a real honour to have been given the opportunity to coach the women’s national team here in Germany."
Wück has worked at the DFB in various capacities since 2011 and won the U17 World Cup in Indonesia with Germany U17s at the end of 2023. Together with Maren Meinert and Saskia Bartusiak, he now takes over responsibility for the women's national team. It is a set-up that Wück sees as having clear advantages. "My wish was to have two experienced former internationals alongside me. We have found two that are a perfect match. Both also have the exact skillsets that I was looking for," explained Wück.
Bartusiak: Respect, humility and anticipation
Maren Meinert and Saskia Bartusiak are among the most successful footballers in German women’s football history. Meinert, who among other things won a bronze medal at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, is also looking forward to this new challenge. "It is an honour for me to work for this coaching team. I am really looking forward to the task ahead," she said after the official press conference at a get-together with journalists.
Saskia Bartusiak, who won both a gold medal and a bronze medal at the Olympics, is also excited about her new position in the coaching staff of the Germany women's team. "I was a player for many years – and did that with pride! So I’m enormously excited about my time here and for the first test," she said, and emphasised, "I’m approaching the whole thing with a lot of respect and humility, but also with a lot of positive anticipation."
There is a clear division of responsibilities between the assistant coaches, with Maren Meinert focussing on work in attack, while Saskia Bartusiak will help the players with the defensive side of the game. This division should make it easier to work well with the players in small groups. Christian Wück is confident: "We can learn a lot from each other."
Wück debut on the big stage
The new coaching staff will start their tenure in just a few weeks with one of the most prestigious games in women's football: Wück’s first game will be against England at Wembley on 25th October. An impressive setting for the start of a new era in German women’s football. "There are worse things than making your debut at Wembley," said Wück with a smile. "We want to measure up against the best."
After Wembley comes a game in Duisburg, with the team facing Australia there on 28th October. It is not only a first home game for the new coaching team, but also a very special one for Duisburg-born Meinert. "Duisburg is a real home game, and the Duisburg crowd will make sure the game is an unforgettable experience," she said. It is clear that both games will be exciting challenges, but the new coaching team is looking forward to them with a lot of anticipation and optimism.
