Last Saturday the Germany Women’s U19s squad flew out from Frankfurt to Tel Aviv for the European Championship in Israel. DFB-TV spoke with coach Maren Meinert before the tournament, and in the interview before the opener against England today (18:30 CEST), she speaks about the competition and her own goals.
Maren Meinert does not duck away. “As a German team, we are always amongst the favourites at the Euros,” says Germany’s coach. This is a tag that the competitors can easily put on the German team, but this also coincides with the demanding attitude of the Germany team. “We are well prepared,” says the coach. Her initial goal is to reach the semi-finals because the best four teams in these Euros will qualify for the U20 World Cup in 2016.
Many title contenders
The tournament will certainly be nothing more than a one-horse race. Maren Meinert warns of other aspiring contenders: “Sweden and France are up there. You also can’t underestimate England and Norway. It is an open European Championship; we have a level playing field.”
Obstacles can be expected from the first game. Germany will today play England in their group, followed by Norway on Saturday (18:30 CEST) and finally Spain on Tuesday (18.30 CEST). They are all nations that are known for their youth development. “Everything is therefore possible in our group,” according to Maren Meinert, “we’re expecting three high-quality games. That’s what we want to have.”
Last Saturday the Germany Women’s U19s squad flew out from Frankfurt to Tel Aviv for the European Championship in Israel. DFB-TV spoke with coach Maren Meinert before the tournament, and in the interview before the opener against England today (18:30 CEST), she speaks about the competition and her own goals.
Maren Meinert does not duck away. “As a German team, we are always amongst the favourites at the Euros,” says Germany’s coach. This is a tag that the competitors can easily put on the German team, but this also coincides with the demanding attitude of the Germany team. “We are well prepared,” says the coach. Her initial goal is to reach the semi-finals because the best four teams in these Euros will qualify for the U20 World Cup in 2016.
Many title contenders
The tournament will certainly be nothing more than a one-horse race. Maren Meinert warns of other aspiring contenders: “Sweden and France are up there. You also can’t underestimate England and Norway. It is an open European Championship; we have a level playing field.”
Obstacles can be expected from the first game. Germany will today play England in their group, followed by Norway on Saturday (18:30 CEST) and finally Spain on Tuesday (18.30 CEST). They are all nations that are known for their youth development. “Everything is therefore possible in our group,” according to Maren Meinert, “we’re expecting three high-quality games. That’s what we want to have.”
