Soccer Championship
Lena Oberdorf “loves it when there is a bang in a duel” and at 20 she is already a leader
National coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg (left) thinks highly of Lena Sophie Oberdorf
© Sebastian Gollnow / DPA
At only 20 years old, Lena Oberdorf is a decisive German player at the EM 2022. In defensive midfield, she ensures that opposing attacks fizzle out – and has a lot of fun doing it.
The German women’s national team did not concede a single goal in the preliminary round and the first knockout game of the European Football Championship. Lena Oberdorf played a large part in this. Despite being only 20 years old, she is considered one of the best footballers in the world in the sixth position in defensive midfield. “I think everyone saw what Lena Oberdorf played at such a young age – with maturity and intensity and a desire to conquer the ball (…) and to transfer that to her teammates. That was great!” , enthused national coach Martina Voss-Tecklenburg after reaching the semifinals in Brentford.
“I love it when things get physical, when there’s a bang in a duel,” Oberdorf once explained her style of play. At the age of twelve, the defensive specialist already played in the U15 selection of the German Football Association, and at the age of 17 she replaced Birgit Prinz as the youngest German national player at the 2019 World Cup in France. One of her role models: Sergio Ramos. She studied the rather rustic style of play of the Spanish captain together with her brother Tim – himself a professional at Fortuna Düsseldorf – in YouTube videos. What struck her: “He always celebrated when he unpacked a tackle.
Role models for Lena Oberdorf: Ramos and Busquets
In addition to Ramos, the former Essen resident also likes to learn something from another Spanish ex-world champion: “I really like watching Sergio Busquets because he always moves extremely well in the rooms.” And she hopes to meet Bayern star Joshua Kimmich personally. “I think I’d like to talk to Kimmich because he also embodies that a bit: these emotions in the game, never giving up, going into every duel again, doing every run again,” explained Oberdorf. “I think our game ideas fit together quite well.”
If the DFB-Elf at 9 p.m. (ZDF, at DAZN or in the star-Liveticker) competes against France in the semi-finals, Oberdorf will also have to unpack one or the other tackle. The French “have a brutal quality, they’re really good, especially on the flanks,” said Joti Chatzialexiou, head of the national team at the DFB, after the semi-final opponents of the Germans had been determined. He sees a “Fifty-Fifty game”. But he has “no worries because I feel the energy in our team”.
Preparation for the EM semi-final against France
France face Germany with many players from Champions League winners Olympique Lyon, such as the 1.87m tall Renard, but also with two days less preparation. What coach Corinne Diacre does not seem to worry about: “When you win, you recover faster and faster.”
Oberdorf is used to winning. At 16, she moved from her home club TSG Sprockhövel to the Bundesliga for SGS Essen and quickly developed into a top performer. In the summer of 2020 she signed for VfL Wolfsburg and won the double with the club after the 2021 DFB Cup this year. Oberdorf promptly extended her contract until 2025. She doesn’t want to go abroad, although she could certainly earn more in England, for example. “The family relationship you have in Wolfsburg gives you an incredible amount,” she said.
With team spirit to the European Championship final?
In the DFB team, too, there seems to be an atmosphere at the EM that inspires Oberdorf’s performance. “I think you could say right from the start that Wembley is our biggest dream. With the team spirit we have right now, we’re on the right track,” said Oberdorf after winning the quarter-finals against Austria.
Oberdorf forms the team council with Almuth Schult, Sara Däbritz, Lina Magull, Svenja Huth and captain Alexandra Popp. “My role has changed in that I can speak up more and be a little leader alongside the others,” she says.
“We just want to play”
As such, she then sat next to the national coach at the final press conference before the semi-finals on Tuesday and answered the question of how a European Championship semi-final felt for the younger players. “For me it’s ‘Wow, it’s a semi-final!’ because the atmosphere is completely different. Even the atmosphere in the quarter-finals was different from the group stage.” But you think the younger ones put it away well. “If you can say one thing about us youngsters, it’s that we just want to play.” And maybe that’s the secret of Oberdorf’s success.
Other sources: DPA, “Southgerman newspaper”, Profile of Lena Oberdorf on “kicker.de”, PK with Voss-Tecklenburg and Lena Oberdorf ahead of the semifinals on “dfb.tv”.