Brave Bremen bowed out of the Champions League on Tuesday night despite a 4:4 aggeragate score against Juventus. Thomas Schaaf's side had hung on for 88 minutes having gone ahead early but a 65th minute equaliser was added to by Emerson who pounced on a mistake by Werder keeper Tim Wiese.
Juventus coach Fabio Capello admitted "luck was on our side" after his team edged into the last eight of the UEFA Champions League thanks to a late Emerson goal against Werder Bremen. The strike came from a mistake by the otherwise excellent stand-in goalkeeper Tim Wiese as the Italian outfit made it 2-1 on the night and 4-4 on aggregate to progress on the away-goals rule.
Fabio Capello, Juventus coach
Bremen once again proved how good they are. Their goalkeeper made several great saves and although we made one costly mistake, in the end luck was on our side. Our elimination would have been unfair on reflection, but at the start of the game we were too eager to score and made too many mistakes with the final ball. They pressed well and it was difficult to find the breakthrough. My team eventually proved their character, pushing until the final whistle.
Thomas Schaaf, Bremen coach
We were as close as it gets to going through. We played excellently in the first leg and did well tonight too, creating several good chances. Wiese was extraordinary throughout, but in the end his mistake condemned us to defeat. The squad are all upset, particularly Wiese, but we have exceeded all expectation and I honestly think we deserved to qualify. Juve played well and controlled the midfield, but we were strong in defence and had a few chances to double our lead.
A full match report will follow