Bitter diagnosis
DFB striker Hoffmann suffers cruciate ligament tear
Updated 10/11/2025 – 2:31 p.mReading time: 1 min.
In the game against SGS Essen, Giovanna Hoffmann had to be replaced in tears. Now the DFB striker has bitter certainty: she will be out for a long time.
DFB striker Giovanna Hoffmann from Bundesliga club RB Leipzig is out for a long time. As her club announced on Saturday, the 27-year-old tore a cruciate ligament in the Bundesliga game against SGS Essen. This was revealed by an MRI scan on Friday evening. The striker will therefore also be missing from the national team’s Nations League semi-final against France on October 24th and 28th. National coach Christian Wück wants to announce the squad next Tuesday. The diagnosis probably even means the end of the season for Hoffmann.
Hoffmann was left lying on the sideline in obvious pain after a duel in the middle of the second half, was initially treated for minutes and ultimately had to be replaced in tears. She had previously contributed her second goal of the season to her club’s 2-1 win.
Leipzig coach Jonas Stephan had already appeared pessimistic after the game: “If a player leaves the field crying, then unfortunately you have to assume that it won’t work again in three days,” he said. He knew that a failure would be serious: “Giovanna is a figurehead for our team, so I don’t have to explain to anyone that this would be a fatal failure for us.”