It all starts on Monday. The Germany women’s team have settled down at their base camp in the Dutch town of Hertogenbosch, and await their first European Championship game against Sweden on Monday (20:45 CEST). Mandy Islacker shares her thoughts on the tournament in the Netherlands, her move from 1. FFC Frankfurt to Bayern München, and the opening game against Sweden.
DFB.de: Ms. Islacker, have you settled in well at base camp?
Mandy Islacker: Yes, we’ve received a very warm welcome. The hotel looks great, and we have our own space as well as a player’s lounge. It’s also not far from the training facilities and those facilities are really good. The service is top quality.
DFB.de: Have you ever been to the Netherlands before?
Islacker: Yes, I was born in Essen, which isn’t far from Venlo or Roermond. You can buy frikandel (a Dutch snack) on every street corner there (laughs).
DFB.de: How did you use your last days off before your European Championship campaign began?
Islacker: I trained a bit – each player received an individual training programme after the final session in Heidelberg. Aside from that, I enjoyed my time with my family and met up with a lot of friends.
DFB.de: You also made the move from 1. FFC Frankfurt to FC Bayern München. Good timing?
Islacker: It was important to me that it was all wrapped up before the EURO. That means that I can concentrate fully on the football I have ahead of me.
DFB.de: What made you choose Bayern München?
Islacker: It’s definitely a new challenge. Apart from that, I also want to challenge for the title and play in the Champions League.
DFB.de: But the circumstances aren’t exactly new for you, are they?
Islacker: That’s true – I already played for FC Bayern between 2007 and 2010. A few of the girls I knew from before are still there, and I’ve also seen a few of the players now whilst on international duty, which is great.
DFB.de: You finally get your EURO campaign underway with the opening group-stage game against Sweden (Monday 20:45 CEST). What sort of a game are you anticipating?
Islacker: Sweden play a 4-4-2 formation and remain very compact defensively, and then look to hit you on the break using strikers with a lot of pace. For that reason it’s important for us to make sure we move the ball quickly and use the space available to us to take our chances. That means that we need to do a lot of running – even when we don’t have the ball, and rotate positions freely.
DFB.de: As defending champions, Germany are automatically considered one of the favourites. Which other teams do you think are capable of winning the tournament?
Islacker: Definitely England, France, Sweden, and Norway. Countries like Spain and Switzerland have also come a long way in recent years – by no means can they be underestimated.
DFB.de: How would you describe the atmosphere amongst the squad?
Islacker: It’s a really good atmosphere. Fun, but focused. We’re all looking forward to the first game.
It all starts on Monday. The Germany women’s team have settled down at their base camp in the Dutch town of Hertogenbosch, and await their first European Championship game against Sweden on Monday (20:45 CEST). Mandy Islacker shares her thoughts on the tournament in the Netherlands, her move from 1. FFC Frankfurt to Bayern München, and the opening game against Sweden.
DFB.de: Ms. Islacker, have you settled in well at base camp?
Mandy Islacker: Yes, we’ve received a very warm welcome. The hotel looks great, and we have our own space as well as a player’s lounge. It’s also not far from the training facilities and those facilities are really good. The service is top quality.
DFB.de: Have you ever been to the Netherlands before?
Islacker: Yes, I was born in Essen, which isn’t far from Venlo or Roermond. You can buy frikandel (a Dutch snack) on every street corner there (laughs).
DFB.de: How did you use your last days off before your European Championship campaign began?
Islacker: I trained a bit – each player received an individual training programme after the final session in Heidelberg. Aside from that, I enjoyed my time with my family and met up with a lot of friends.
DFB.de: You also made the move from 1. FFC Frankfurt to FC Bayern München. Good timing?
Islacker: It was important to me that it was all wrapped up before the EURO. That means that I can concentrate fully on the football I have ahead of me.
DFB.de: What made you choose Bayern München?
Islacker: It’s definitely a new challenge. Apart from that, I also want to challenge for the title and play in the Champions League.
DFB.de: But the circumstances aren’t exactly new for you, are they?
Islacker: That’s true – I already played for FC Bayern between 2007 and 2010. A few of the girls I knew from before are still there, and I’ve also seen a few of the players now whilst on international duty, which is great.
DFB.de: You finally get your EURO campaign underway with the opening group-stage game against Sweden (Monday 20:45 CEST). What sort of a game are you anticipating?
Islacker: Sweden play a 4-4-2 formation and remain very compact defensively, and then look to hit you on the break using strikers with a lot of pace. For that reason it’s important for us to make sure we move the ball quickly and use the space available to us to take our chances. That means that we need to do a lot of running – even when we don’t have the ball, and rotate positions freely.
DFB.de: As defending champions, Germany are automatically considered one of the favourites. Which other teams do you think are capable of winning the tournament?
Islacker: Definitely England, France, Sweden, and Norway. Countries like Spain and Switzerland have also come a long way in recent years – by no means can they be underestimated.
DFB.de: How would you describe the atmosphere amongst the squad?
Islacker: It’s a really good atmosphere. Fun, but focused. We’re all looking forward to the first game.
