It was less than three years ago that Sara Däbritz left Munich for Paris. But, even in 2019, the thought that the next time she might play a match in her native Bavaria would be in the Allianz Arena was the stuff of fantasy.
“Honestly, I never thought about that,” she told DW. “But now, with the new Champions League system and the standard of women’s football getting better and better, when I saw the draw that we are playing against Munich, I had it a little in my head that ‘maybe we’re playing in the Allianz Arena — this would be amazing.'”
If she couldn’t have realistically imagined playing for Paris Saint-Germain in the 75,000 capacity arena in 2019, it was entirely inconceivable when Däbritz was growing up in the southern German state. The increase in interest in the women’s game at the top level means all but one of the quarterfinal ties in this season’s Champions League quarterfinals are to be played at stadiums normally reserved for the men.
“For me it’s just a positive feeling, the positive vibes you get when you enter a stadium like that. You go onto the grass, which is perfect, then you see the stadium — it’s beautiful,” Däbritz said. “And I hope we’ll be playing in front of many, many fans. This is the atmosphere we’re wishing for, and it’s giving us motivation and more strength.”
Leading the way
Däbritz captained the national team in February’s Arnold Clark Cup, a tournament that also featured England, Canada and Spain, and she is relishing being a leader for club and country.
Däbritz has won 85 caps for Germany
“I’m growing, I’m 27 now, and I’ve played many games for the national team and the clubs, so I call myself an experienced player, and I try to help the young ones, the people who are coming in to our squad,” she said.
The former Freiburg midfielder burst on to the international stage as a surprise call-up for the 2013 European Championship, which Germany went on to win. By 2016 she had added a Bundesliga title with Bayern Munich, an under-20 World Cup and an Olympic gold medal to her collection. Her next challenge was to play abroad, something relatively few female German internationals do.
“The differences in the culture have helped me, the different playing styles — it’s all stuff that helps you develop as a player and a person. I’m really happy about my experience,” she said.
“It was important to me when I moved abroad to learn the language fast, to adapt to the culture, and I think this has gone quite well,” she said, “so it helped me to integrate into the team faster and understand the culture and the club.”
Road to recovery
Though she was able to adapt off the pitch quickly enough, Däbritz faced an enormous challenge just a few months after joining PSG, when she sustained an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in December 2019 in a game against Montpellier.
She said her positive nature, and the support of family, friends and social media followers, meant that dealing with an injury at such a key point in her career was something to use to her advantage.
“This injury made me even stronger, mentally, as a person, but also on the pitch it helped me going through all of those challenges during the injury,” she said. “So now I feel really comfortable, I enjoy playing in another country.”
But she is also relishing playing back at home when PSG visit the Allianz Arena on March 22.
“I got many messages after the draw,” she laughs. “They were talking and directly asking for tickets: ‘Sara, I will come to the stadium, I’m going to watch the games,’ so my family and friends will be present there.'”
Däbritz’s hope is that “many, many” fans will join those close to her to provide that atmosphere she’s dreaming of.
Regardless of who is watching — and how many are — the stage itself, which has hosted numerous men’s World Cup and Euro matches, not to mention a Champions League Final, holds genuine significance.
Edited by Chuck Penfold