Going mental

WUSA, big-game experience boosts Germany in World Cup final

By Scott French, Soccer America

Germany's always had wonderful players, but experience in big games -- and the lessons of the WUSA -- inspired a mentality that meant the difference in an impressive Women's World Cup triumph.

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Nia Kuenzer had no time for any of this "hero" talk.

No matter that it was her head that had provided Germany its first Women's World Cup championship, her golden goal from Renate Lingor's exquisite free kick eight minutes into overtime that had provoked the scrum around her, that had sparked the delirium into which she was instantly enveloped, uncertain of what exactly had happened.

"I'm no hero -- I'm not taking credit for that," argued the little-used midfielder, who had scored just once in 31 international appearances -- most in a reserve role -- before netting the goal of her life to topple Sweden in the biggest, best match in Germany's long, storied history in women's soccer.

Her teammates knew different, even if Kuenzer wasn't buying it.

"That's what I've always said," offered Maren Meinert, whose goal seconds into the second half started Germany toward its 2-1 triumph in a thrilling final Oct. 12 at the Home Depot Center. "We have 18 players here in the tournament, and we will need them all. We have a different hero every game, and today it was Nia."

Today it was Kuenzer. Yesterday it was Meinert. The day before it was Birgit Prinz, or Bettina Wiegmann, or Kerstin Garefrekes, or Silke Rottenberg.

The best team in the tournament won the trophy, and the list of reasons why stretches far off the page.

There was Meinert, who had insisted she wasn't coming back after retiring following Germany's 2001 European Championship victory, then relented to provide the creative center that fostered German dominance. Marika Domanski Lyfors, Sweden's coach, joined in the Meinert-is-the-best-player-on-earth chorus when all was done.

There was Wiegmann, in her fourth World Cup, the deep-lying playmaker who was everywhere doing everything during the final. Like Meinert, she was playing in her final game.

There was Prinz, winner of the Golden Shoe (with seven goals) and Golden Ball (as World Cup MVP), the most dominant striker in the game.

There was Rottenberg, the tournament's top keeper; an outstanding backline; dead-ball specialist Lingor; young turk Garefrekes. The Germans were technically and tactically superior to all their foes, and nobody argued that they were deserving champions.

'A LITTLE FRIGHTENED.' Germany has had superb women's teams for years. They've won five of the last six UEFA titles, including the last three, reached the 1991 World Cup semis, the final in '95 and captured the bronze medal at the Sydney Olympics three years ago.

In '99, they appeared on the verge of upsetting the host Americans, then watched two leads disappear.

"In 1999, we were a little frightened," Prinz said. "We were thinking, 'Don't give me the ball, don't give me the ball.' "

Said Meinert: "We kind of almost asked for an autograph after the game because we were so impressed by the American team."

When they met in the semifinals this time, the Germans no longer were in awe. The difference was mentality, for so long the Americans' trump card.

The previous four years had provided extensive big-game experience, and the WUSA had afforded several Germans -- Meinert, Prinz, Steffi Jones and Sandra Minnert among them -- the opportunity to play with the U.S. stars on an everyday basis. Some of the Americans' aura of specialness was destroyed.

Playing in the WUSA, Prinz said, let the Germans know "the American players are not more physical and not better" than the Germans.

"The greatest lesson [the Germans] learned over here was our mentality, and they took that back to the German team," U.S. captain Julie Foudy said after the Americans lost, 1-0, in the semis. "I don't think that's a negative. I think that's a positive. I think the game grows because of it."

"If you go into another country," said Coach Tina Theune-Meyer, the first woman to win a World Cup title, "it's always good for your personalities to see what they do [in America]. To learn and to speak another language and to play on a high level. But in Germany, the other players, they did other things. [Some of them] did the coaching courses, and they have the highest level of coaching. They are soccer teachers.

"We have other things in Germany to raise the personalities."

After the Germans' semifinal triumph, Tiffeny Milbrett called them "soccer machines," and she didn't mean robotic or emotionless.

"Every player holds possession or is dangerous -- that's what makes Germany special," she said. "All the players have that ability. ... This [was] a dream for us, to come out and step on the field and have an incredibly equal World Cup opponent."

Sweden's Svensson didn't find the Americans and Germans equal -- "Germany is better," she said -- and neither did Canadian captain Charmaine Hooper.

"Germany was the best team we played in this tournament," Hooper said. "We played Germany, we played the Americans, we played Sweden. Overall, I feel Germany is more dominant. ... I'm saying Germany is the best team that I have ever played against."

ROAD TO RICHES. Germany overcame a fourth-minute deficit to batter Canada, 4-1, and followed it by burying Japan and Argentina, losing Jones and Linda Bresonik to injuries in the process.

Russia offered no opposition in the quarterfinals, and Rottenberg came up with the game of her life -- so did defenders Ariane Hingst and Kerstin Stegemann -- to beat the Americans in the semifinals.

That brought the showdown with Sweden and set the stage for Kuenzer's heroics.

The Germans played like 11 individuals in the first half -- "Nobody was helping the other players," Prinz put it -- and the Swedes used their speed to take the advantage, Hanna Ljungberg sprinting past Hingst to finish Victoria Svensson's throughball.

Meinert, left alone on the right, evened things right after halftime, beating goalkeeper Caroline Joensson despite a poor first touch and a rather poor shot. Although Sweden had its moments, and its chances, afterward, it was the Germans' game from that point on.

Prinz could have been the heroine, so could have Hingst or Meinert -- all had chances from close-in. It could have been anyone, really, just somebody to get a head to one of the two dozen corners the Swedes surrendered.

It could have been Kuenzer, who came on in the 88th minute and promptly wasted two chances in extra time, crossing through an empty box when given an open shot in the 92nd, then firing close enough for Jonsson to make a foot save when given another open shot five minutes later.

It ended in some controversy, with a free kick 32 yards out after Romanian referee Floarea Cristina Ionescu whistled Svensson after she'd stripped Stegemann of the ball.

Svensson was livid at the call, and so was Domanski Lyfors -- fourth official Sonia Denoncourt told Svensson afterward that her takeaway had been clean, "but that's football."

Lingor's free kick was perfect, curling into the box, and Kuenzer climbed into the sky, twisting to loop the ball over her mark, Kristin Bengtsson, over Jonsson, and into the net.

The Swedes fell to the ground as if shot; the Germans leapt into each other's arms.

"I was confused," Kuenzer admitted, "I didn't know what happened. I didn't know what was going on."

She was asked if she'd envisioned anything like this in her wildest dreams.

"Every soccer player dreams of scoring the goal that decides the World Cup, I can't deny that," she said. "But my wildest dreams? They're not about soccer."

Scott French is a senior editor at Soccer America magazine.