SGS Essen is something special as a purely women’s football club in the Bundesliga. But things haven’t been going well so far this season. And now the coach and sports director are gone too.
That’s how it is sometimes in the football business: As a journalist, you have arranged an interview with a football coach – but then it is suddenly canceled. That’s what happened on Wednesday with women’s Bundesliga team SGS Essen. Instead of a conversation with coach Robert Augustin, wdr.de received information from the press spokesman that the club and “team boss” – as Augustin was officially referred to in Essen – have separated from each other.
However, this news didn’t really come out of nowhere: SGS Essen had – there is no other way to put it – a catastrophic start to the season. The club has one point in its account after five match days. Most recently there was an 8-0 defeat against VfL Wolfsburg on their own pitch. The fact that the coach is viewed critically in such a situation – this is no different in women’s football.
Friday in Leipzig – assistant coach Wissmann takes over
Now in Essen the motto is: “first collect”. In addition to the coach, sports director Thomas Gerstner was also let go. There is already an extremely important game on the program on Friday with the away game at RB Leipzig. The team is then looked after by assistant coach Jessica Wissmann. Leipzig is also in the bottom of the table – this is an extremely important duel in the fight to stay in the league.
Maintaining the Bundesliga – that’s what Essen is all about. The last purely women’s football club in the Bundesliga, which sees itself as something like the “Gallic Village” in the realm of the top clubs. The Bundesliga is now dominated by major men’s football clubs, which have recently been investing a lot of money in the development of their women’s division.
Schalke and Dortmund are coming
Essen’s Vanessa Fürst (r.) in a duel with Cologne’s Carlotta Imping (m.)
The Essen women cannot keep up financially in any way. And soon they will also have powerful competition in the neighborhood: Borussia Dortmund and FC Schalke 04 are currently pushing forward women’s football, which they have so to speak missed out on for years, and are also aiming for the Bundesliga in the medium term.
Financially no chance against big clubs
It is all the more important for the club to train its own young players so well that they will eventually have the quality for the Bundesliga team. This has often been successful in the past. National player Linda Dallmann (Bayern Munich), for example, played for the SGS for eight years. Her teammate Lea Schüller made it from the junior level to the professional level in Essen, as did Frankfurt’s Nicole Anyomi. Lena Oberdorf (FC Bayern), Carlotta Wamser (Bayer Leverkusen), Stina Johannes and Elisa Senß (both Eintracht Frankfurt) also once wore the Essen jersey.
But this year nothing seems to be working properly. The squad has hardly gotten any worse compared to the previous season. With goalkeeper Sophia Winkler (Eintracht Frankfurt) and attacker Annalena Rieke (AS Roma), they lost two important players. But with ex-national player Jana Feldkamp (from Hoffenheim) and Shari van Belle (from Liège), Essen also signed two high-quality players for their own squad.
Coach criticized the lack of effort
Coach Augustin recently criticized the lack of commitment, especially among the younger players. The German U-national players Natasha Kowalski (22), Lany Mia Bäcker (17) and Paulina Platner (19) were particularly targeted. In any case, they are certified as having sufficient talent. Augustin, however, criticized her inadequate body language on the field.
It will be interesting to see who will be the new coach in Essen in the long term and whether improvements will be seen in terms of the team’s performance. It would be important to take something tangible from Leipzig. Because a week later, Essen welcomes TSG Hoffenheim. At the beginning of November there will probably be the toughest away game of the year: The SGS will then play against the German champions Bayern Munich.
Our source:
- Interview with press spokesman
