Promoted side Mainz - Werder Bremen's next opponent on Saturday, 26 September 2009 at 3:30 p.m. - have played an excellent season in the league for the relatively unknown Thomas Tuchel. The 36-year-old coach was Mainz's former A-youth boss before taking over for Jörn Andersen, who was sacked just before the season started. After six games, Tuchel's team is fifth in the league with three victories, two draws and just one loss, including a sensational 2-1 win at home against Bayern Munich.
"This match is a pretty big one because I count Bremen as one of the three best teams in Germany. But we don't have to look down on ourselves playing against a team of Werder Bremen's calibre. We also have faith in ourselves," said the Mainz coach confidently. "We cannot just play defence. Bremen have a very strong playing competence and an asymmetric build-up. The offensive players especially have a lot of freedom with the ball, breaking down positions and doing a lot of switching. Therefore it is tough to calculate what we will face tactically," said Tuchel at the press conference ahead of the game at Weser Stadium. One thing is clear, Mainz are hoping for the next coup in the Bundesliga. And Thomas Schaaf's Green-Whites will have to stop that.