What a week for Werder’s new acquisition. On Wednesday the 23-year-old learned that he was nominated for the Brazilian national team for the Selecao’s internationals in early...
What a week for Werder’s new acquisition. On Wednesday the 23-year-old learned that he was nominated for the Brazilian national team for the Selecao’s internationals in early...
What a week for Werder’s new acquisition. On Wednesday the 23-year-old learned that he was nominated for the Brazilian national team for the Selecao’s internationals in early October. And on Saturday he had a superb performance in helping the Green-Whites to a 3-2 victory over Hamburg in the North Derby. "I still have to get used to the German language and the cold," the good spirited Brazilian told journalists after the match. "But I knew about the strength of the league ahead of time and was well-prepared for it."
And he proved that against Hamburg. Early on Wesley played defensive midfield along side Torsten Frings. But after Clemens Fritz’s injury, the all-arounder took over the spot as right back. And Wesley was strong in both positions. "My favourite position is ahead of the backline but I will play anywhere the coach puts me and where I can help the team," said Wesley, who was not new to the right back position. “I played that position quite a few times at Santos and knew what I needed to do. But Per Mertesacker really helped me a lot with his experience."
And the performance drew the praise of the head coach. "He plays as though he’s been here for years. It doesn’t matter which position he plays, he totally accepts the things he is told," said Thomas Schaaf, who was not surprised by Wesley’s showing as right back. "Even in the midfield he covered a lot of ground and worked a lot. But in the backline he did his job as though he played there week after week. He definitely earned congratulations for his performance." The coach also was in the mood to joke about the Brazilian. "But his hands are too small, otherwise we could use him as goalkeeper as well."
