Voss-Tecklenburg on criticism: “I almost completely lost consciousness”

MArtina Voss-Tecklenburg spoke publicly for the first time about psychological problems and fatigue after leaving the World Championships in Australia. In an interview with ZDF, in which the 55-year-old formerly worked as a TV pundit, the former women’s national team coach on Monday described the circumstances surrounding the health problems surrounding her departure. Voss-Tecklenburg also admitted mistakes in her behavior.

She suffered from panic attacks and insomnia due to internal and public criticism after failing in the preliminary round of the World Cup. She “almost completely collapsed.” Fears, uncertainty and the feeling of emptiness in my head became increasingly stronger – as if someone had turned me off.

The German Football Association (DFB) announced in early September that Voss-Tecklenburg had fallen ill. After a meeting that lasted several weeks, the association appointed Horst Hrubesch as interim coach.

Clear advice from a doctor.

“I was sick and didn’t know how long this process takes? “I realized that now I just need to be there for myself,” Voss-Tecklenburg said of her physical and mental struggles at the end of the summer. She remarked: “My head is empty. I’m just crying. I am incapable of thinking constructively.”

Her doctor’s advice was clear: stop taking the drug first to minimize the risk of depressive episodes. “I didn’t feel good. I didn’t feel well before the World Cup,” Voss-Tecklenburg said. Their squad had already exposed unexpected weaknesses in June’s disappointing test matches against Vietnam (2-1) and Zambia (2-3).

The German Football Association terminated her contract with Voss-Tecklenburg, which ran until the end of summer 2025, in early November after it emerged that the Duisburg native had been giving lectures during an association-approved holiday. Voss-Tecklenburg has now said that she has informed the DFB that public appearances will take place after her sick leave ends. She took time off and the rest of the year off “to fully recover, just to use those weeks again, to come back and take part in life again.”

A joint press release with her employer, which renewed her contract in early April and praised her in advance, was not issued at the time for “various reasons.” “Looking back, you can say: What a stupid mistake,” Voss-Tecklenburg admitted to clumsy actions on her part. “But I have had to pay for it to a certain extent, both with my health problems and with the media,” she said.

After a historically disappointing performance at the World Cup, she tried to once again lift the spirits of the players and give them courage. “Everyone was trying to function in some way to do justice to their task.” But the mood was extremely depressing, Voss-Tecklenburg said.

“Private” conversation with the President of the DFB

At the moment, no one from the group of players around captain Alexandra Popp is campaigning for the return of their former confidantes. At the same time, most of the team was happy to see Grubes return. During his return, Olympic qualification for Paris 2024 should be achieved. The decisive group game against league leaders Denmark will take place in Rostock on Friday 1 December (20:30 on ZDF).

Voss-Tecklenburg announced that a “private” discussion with DFB President Bernd Neuendorf would soon take place. She wanted to be able to tell him something: “what I feel and what has touched and affected me and perhaps also to some extent disappointed and irritated me.” During her tenure, as Neuendorf explained when the secession was announced, “important impulses were given in the field of women’s football.”

The rest of the 15-line statement dated November 4 was noticeably short and did not include Voss-Tecklenburg’s statement. On Monday, she was given nearly 25 minutes on television to explain her position. The last word on this issue, which has led everyone involved to unforeseen ups and downs, is unlikely to be spoken yet.