Germany hosted Poland in Rostock’s Ostseestadion in qualifiers for next year’s Women’s European Championship. Bayern Munich fans would see many familiar faces on Germany’s team sheet, but it was Natalia Padilla — a Bayern forward who was loaned to 1.FC Köln this season — who got the show started. In just the first minute she put the road team in the lead.
The lead would last over a half hour. In the 34th minute, Bayern’s Klara Bühl whipped a corner kick into the six yard box where it bounced off the shoulder of a Polish defender and into the net for an own goal. The first half ended level at 1-1, and that deadlock would not be broken until more than midway through the second half.
After a frustrating start to the second half for Bayern’s Lea Schüller, she finally got her goal in the 77th minute. It came after a long ball by a German defender was casually watched by two Polish defenders, leaving a lane for Schüller to get to the ball, dribble into the box, and put the ball far post past the outstretched keeper.
Schüller almost had another goal in the 84th minute when another great Bühl corner was headed back to her. She attempted a diving header, but it was blocked off the line. Fortunately, her Bayern teammate, Giulia Gwinn — who was now wearing the captain’s armband — was there to blast the ball home to make it 3-1.
Four minutes later, Bühl set up another goal that she will not get credit on paper for, when she craftily dribbled into the box and was taken down to earn a penalty. Gwinn stepped up and smashed the ball into the top corner of the goal to finish the scoring at 4-1.
This win — which keeps Germany perfect through three qualifiers — starts a busy summer for the DFB-Frauen team. They will face Poland again in the reverse fixture on Tuesday, June 4. They will finish their qualification group play away to Iceland on July 12 and then home against Austria on July 16. Just nine days later, the Olympics start in France.