Eta set to become first female assistant coach in Bundesliga

BERLIN (AP):

Marie-Louise Eta is set to become the first female assistant coach in the 60-year history of the Bundesliga when Union Berlin play on Saturday.

Union appointed Eta as assistant to interim coach Marco Grote following the dismissal of the popular Urs Fischer during the international break.

Fischer led the team to unprecedented success over five years, but Union are last this season after nine consecutive defeats.

Grote and Eta were promoted from Union’s Under-19 team, who are third in both the domestic league and UEFA Youth League competitions before the senior team came calling. Their first game in charge is the home match against Augsburg, who are unbeaten in four games.

Despite the fact Eta will be the first female member of a coaching staff in the league since the Bundesliga was formed in 1963, Union, as a club, only wants to focus on their precarious sporting situation.

“It’s not a conscious decision for a woman. I think that almost discredits this decision,” Union president Dirk Zingler said of Eta’s appointment. “For me, she is a fully qualified coach, and that’s exactly how I see her, whether it’s a woman or a man. This decision was not a question for a woman, but a decision for a football coach who works with the team.”

Grote and Eta led their first training session on Monday, though many players were still absent on international duty. Italian defender Leonardo Bonucci was unable to take part because of a thigh injury sustained in the 4-0 loss at Bayer Leverkusen before the international break.

The 32-year-old Eta, a former defensive midfielder, ended her playing career at the age of 26, when she turned to coaching with Werder Bremen’s Under-15 boys’ team.

Eta had played for Turbine Potsdam – winning the Champions League in 2010 and three Bundesliga titles with the team – before spells at Hamburger SV, Cloppenburg and Bremen. She also played for Germany’s youth teams and later worked as a coaching assistant for Germany’s youth teams.

Eta received her pro coaching licence at the German football federation academy in Frankfurt this year, and joined Union from Bremen in the summer.