“The decisive factor was essentially the team’s performance in Heidenheim, which led us to make the decision that evening. Of course, we then contacted Marie-Louise and presented our idea to her. She was immediately willing and was very pleased about the trust we’re showing in her. I met with Steffen at 11 p.m. that night, told him about it, explained why, and then informed the team first thing that evening. It’s always important that the team hears this directly from us and doesn’t find out through the media.” 

“We mustn’t downplay the situation we’re in right now. Though the standings look good, and we’re still far from the danger zone in terms of points, we have a tough game this weekend, and a situation like this can change very quickly. That’s why we don’t want to risk ending up in an even more critical situation." 

“And so the mood was also one of disappointment—a mix of disappointment that we lost this game, especially in the way we did—but at the same time, we’re looking ahead, recognizing that we all share the responsibility. And you can feel that; you could feel it right away on Sunday, that the team is willing, that every single player is ready to move forward now.” 

“We did very, very well in the first half of the season. We mustn’t forget that—and of course Steffen deserves huge thanks again for the job he’s done here. He took over the team in a difficult situation, he kept us in the league last season, and we got off to a very good start [in this one] in my view. The goal was to avoid relegation. We were on the right track until the Köln game, but then, as I said, things took their course.” 

“It was important to us, but above all to Steffen, that he say goodbye to the team one last time. He did that yesterday, without us being there, because I think it’s important and right that he says goodbye to the team in that setting... We worked closely together in a spirit of trust, and unfortunately, this is just part of the business. But I’m sure there won’t be any hard feelings, because we’ve always treated each other with authenticity, honesty, and sincerity.” 

“She had a great run with the U-19s team, so she’s already fulfilled a role as head coach and is experienced. Another advantage, of course, is that we all know her and she knows us. She doesn’t need to be shown the ropes here—she knows it all. She knows the stadium, the atmosphere, the people, and above all, the players. And we’re convinced that a head coach can only truly be a head coach if they’ve held that role before, which is why she is the logical next step.”

“But here it’s about the quality she’s already demonstrated in this role—what she’s shown when she’s worked here as an assistant coach or in a shared leadership capacity. So, she’s already proven, in many ways, that she’s a coach who possesses the leadership qualities needed to work successfully. And that was the main focus of our decision-making process.”

“First and foremost, of course, I’m happy for Louie. Everyone who knows her knows what qualities she brings to the table. So, this is simply the logical consequence, its a matter of course that we’re doing it this way now.” 

“We’ve discussed many things over the past few hours, and we’re still coordinating on many other matters. The coaching staff are currently preparing for the week ahead. We’re discussing everything—talking about individual players, our game plan against Wolfsburg—it’s all happening. What we haven’t discussed yet is actually her contract. We’ll certainly address that when the time is right. But that isn’t really important to her right now; she’s focusing on her job, but she can be sure that we’ll naturally reward her accordingly when the time comes. However, that hasn’t really been the most important thing for any of us—and especially not for her—so that’s why we haven’t discussed it yet.” 

“Right now we’re in a situation where the goal is to avoid slipping any deeper. That means tremendous leadership skills are required to quickly recognize how to handle each individual. One player needs this approach—perhaps a firmer hand—while another might need a gentle nudge, a clear message. Overall, the team needs a clear direction with a solid plan for how to win games. We’ll work on all of that together this week. She’ll get up to speed very, very quickly—in fact, she’s already started over the phone, since she has the advantage of knowing many players from the past—and has already spoken with the key players, the captain, and the vice-captain. That will start tomorrow with the first training session, and then there will also be a meeting with the entire squad. She’s getting a handle on things very, very quickly.” 

“When you come to a decision like this, everyone has to take a loss. Nevertheless, it’s also true that you can generate great new energy through a change of head coach. And that is, of course, what we’re hoping for, that players who may have been overlooked in recent games, for whatever reason, or perhaps haven’t have many good moments, will simply get new energy from the new head coach. I am firmly convinced that this will unleash new energy here in the stadium again, because we will all support Loui and the fans will stand behind her.”