Duisburg in dreamland after Frankfurt win
Friday 14 November 2008
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Inka Grings and Fatmire Bajramaj are eyeing a UEFA Women's Cup semi-final appearance (©Getty Images)
FCR 2001 Duisburg coach Martina Voss said her side were "living the dream" following Thursday's 2-0 victory against domestic rivals 1. FFC Frankfurt. The win brought a UEFA Women's Cup semi-final place and represents a seismic shift in female German football as Frankfurt – Bundesliga titleholders in seven of the last ten years and thrice European champions – were left pondering their next move.
Moment to savour
Already leading 3-1 after the away leg, Duisburg's healthy advantage never looked under threat in the comfort of their home ground, and goals from Inka Grings and Linda Bresonik added gloss to a 5-1 aggregate triumph. "We showed what we can achieve with our young team – I take pride from that," said Voss, who had been deprived of one of her leading lights, Fatmire Bajramaj. "The players worked hard for this success and have been very focused in the past few months. We will savour this moment and after that we'll go on living the dream."
Injury woe
Frankfurt know all about fulfilling aspirations. Since they were founded in 1998 the side have been all-conquering. Now they are in a state of shock. "Before the season we wanted to defend our three titles but now we are out of the German Cup and the UEFA Women's Cup – there is not much more to aim for at the moment," said coach Günter Wegmann, who added that injuries to Conny Pohlers, Silke Rottenberg, Pia Wunderlich, Karolin Thomas and Alexandra Krieger were "no excuse". Indeed, he was sporting in defeat, adding: "Congratulations to Martina Voss and her team, it was a deserved win. We were unable to get into the game against opponents who played cleverly and gave us nothing."
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