Germany's Rauch ruled out ahead of Colombia
Already missing regular right-back Giulia Gwinn, the German women's national team will have to do without starting left-back Felicitas Rauch in their quest to capture their third World Championship at the Women's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
The German FA confirmed that the VfL Wolfsburg defender had suffered a knee injury in training and will be out "indefinitely". Bundestrainerin Martina Voss-Tecklenburg will have to find a creative solution ahead of the next fixture.
The German Women's national football team got their 2023 World Cup off to a near perfect start with a 6-0 rout of opponents Morocco last Monday. There is nevertheless some cause for concern in the DFB camp as it was revealed on Friday that starting left-back Felicitas Rauch had suffered a knee injury that will keep her out until further notice. The DFB Mädels face a much tougher test on Sunday in their second group stage fixture. Opponents Colombia also won their opener 2-0 against South Korea.
The German FA confirmed that the VfL Wolfsburg defender had suffered a knee injury in training and will be out "indefinitely". Bundestrainerin Martina Voss-Tecklenburg will have to find a creative solution ahead of the next fixture.
A serious injury to starting right-back Giulia Gwinn has already left Germany thin at the full-back position. To make matters worse, Carolin Simon suffered an ACL tear in Germany's final pre-tournament friendly at the beginning of the month. Attacker Svenja Huth has been filling in for Gwinn at right-back. Bundestrainerin Martina Voss-Tecklenburg possesses no direct replacement for Rauch. Defensive midfielder Chantal Hagel or central defender Sofia Kleinherne may have to deputize at unfamiliar positions.
A trio of players carrying injuries into the tournament - Marina Hegering, Lena Oberdorf, and Sjoeke Nüsken - have been training with the team since the squad arrived at its Australian base-camp. Oberdorf and Hegering are regular starters who both had to sit out the opening match. Voss-Tecklenburg has kept a policy of remaining tight-lipped about injury updates regarding Oberdorf and Hegering. Sara Doorsoun and Melanie Leupolz filled in for the injured duo in last Monday's victory.