Asserted in a physical match

Naldo, one of Werder Bremen’s lofty central defenders, pictured here climbing above Paolo Guerrero.
First Team
Thursday, 08.05.2008 / 17:18

Five yellow cards, two dismissals, dozens of hefty physical challenges, plenty of incidents to discuss and a 30 minute period of non-stop defending - it was a North Derby win that Werder Bremen had to work exceptionally hard to achieve.

Five yellow cards, two dismissals, dozens of hefty physical challenges, plenty of incidents to discuss and a 30 minute period of non-stop defending - it was a North Derby win that Werder Bremen had to work exceptionally hard to achieve. Trainer Thomas Schaaf had predicted an emotional game and prepared his team perfectly for the task at hand. In spite of having the bulk of the possession, van der Vaart & Co. were unable to “put the ball over the line”, in the words of HSV keeper Frank Rost.

 

“It was clear to us right from the beginning that it was going to be that sort of game and so, no one was really caught by surprise. We were up for the challenge,” said Tim Borowski, and it was a state of mind that pleased Klaus Allofs too: “In the past we were the sort of team that was often too soft in those kind of matches and tried to solve everything with footballing ability. Tonight we did everything correctly.”

 

Werder were not even to be stopped by the two red cards brandished by referee Lutz Wagner. Both decisions were certainly questionable and, in particular, captain Frank Baumann was stunned by his sending off: “I can pretty much understand the booking for the foul in the first half, although it was a harsh decision. Then I see red after my second foul in the whole game. That was over the top.”

 

Fellow red card inductee Jurica Vranjes felt he was unfairly branded as the sole culprit in the incident that ended the match for him: “If the referee decides to send me off, that’s okay but Atouba attempted to hit me and missed. Then he came at me and spat, which is what provoked my reaction.” No matter, at the end of the day, the three points were already on the way back to Bremen!

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