Paulina Käte Krumbiegel

Injuries rarely announce themselves as turning points, but the ACL tear that wiped out Paulina Krumbiegel's 2021–22 season sits at the centre of her story: forced to rebuild from zero, and who still managed to close out her time there with 66 Bundesliga appearances and 10 goals across five seasons. She had arrived at Hoffenheim working through the youth ranks and then the reserve side, where 59 games and 13 goals in the 2. Bundesliga made her promotion in 2019 an obvious step rather than a gamble.

The move that defined her, though, came after Hoffenheim let her contract run out. In May 2024 she joined Juventus on a free transfer and became the first German woman to play for the club. Before she again left on a free, this time signing with Eintracht Frankfurt until 2029.

Internationally, her sharpest form came at youth level: 15 goals in 19 caps for Germany's U19s, and a run to the final of the 2018 European Championship, where the team finished runners-up to Spain. Her senior international career has been steadier than prolific — a debut in September 2020, a first goal against Greece in Euro 2021 qualifying, and 11 caps with 4 goals by April 2025.