‘Good positional play and risk management’: Women aiming for third win of the season in Freiburg

“We don’t have much time to dwell on the past,” said Pätzold, referring to last Monday’s 3-2 defeat against the German champions. Following analysis, the match has been put behind them, emotionally speaking. “With a bit more hindsight and following the feedback we’ve received from those around us, we can be proud of ourselves, even if, of course, that’s not what people want to hear.” Although, as with the 2-1 defeat to VfL Wolfsburg, the result was not what was hoped for, the coach remains steadfast. “We’ve shown in both home matches that we’re on a par with the best teams in Germany. Now it’s a matter of living up to the expectations we have of ourselves in the matches that lie ahead.”

Having picked up six points from the first four matchdays, Pätzold takes a look at the table, where the Black and Reds sit in eighth place. “If you drop points against anyone, it creates a bit of pressure in terms of the table. We need to catch up with the teams ahead of us.” At the same time, the season has already shown there have been some surprisingly close matches and dropped points. “In the end, the teams at the top will be those who consistently pick up points, particularly in matches against teams other than Bayern or Wolfsburg.”

SC Freiburg recently secured their second win of the season against newly promoted Mainz 05 (3–0). “We can put Freiburg under pressure with good positional play and risk management; we want to see our attacks through to the end and concede few counter-attacks,” said Pätzold: “We can also take a lot of positives from our defensive work last weekend. All in all, that should give us a good chance of a win.”

Pätzold on Tomasiak: "a great team player"

Paulina Tomasiak could once again play an important role in that endeavour. The Poland international has scored three goals in the last two matches, including a brace against FC Bayern. “Paulina is a great team player with a strong work rate and commitment, and she’s very assertive in both attacking and defensive duels,” said Pätzold: “She’s very dynamic, a strong sprinter, has a great finish and is highly ambitious.” Most recently, the 24-year-old has also shown that she can score from a variety of situations. “We hope this will give her even more self-confidence. That will help her enormously with her integration. She’s receiving a great deal of support from the squad and the coaching staff. Hopefully, we’ll all reap the rewards of this together as a team.”

Zdebel RETURNS

In central midfield, Pätzold can once again count on Sofie Zdebel in central midfield. The 22-year-old returns after serving a one-match suspension. Carolin Simon and Valentina Mädl (muscle injuries), Melissa Friedrich (knock) and Amy Wrigge (torn cruciate) are still out. Natasha Kowalski (illness) is also unavailable. Anyone wishing to support the Werkself can get tickets HERE for the match at the Dreisamstadion.