Start the new year right

Build up to the Hannover game
Werder face Hannover 96 away this weekend (Photo: nordphoto)
preliminary report
Thursday, 17.01.2019 / 18:20

It’s been 28 days since Werder ended the Hinrunde with a defeat in Leipzig, despite putting in a good performance in the 3-2 defeat. The Green-Whites have developed well in 2018, but there’s a feeling that they could have ended the Hinrunde with more points on the board. This is something they’ll be looking to put right in Hannover this weekend. “The main thing isn’t developing our game anymore. Now it’s about points!” said head coach Florian Kohfeldt.

Previous meetings: Werder kicked off the 2018/19 season with a game against Hannover at home back in August. There was a sense of the new Green-Whites’ signings finding their feet and it was a game of few chances, with Hannover mostly on the defensive. Ludwig Augustinsson thought he’d put Werder in front just after half time, but his effort rattled the woodwork. Hannover then took a surprise lead when Hendrick Weydandt nutmegged Jiri Pavlenka after a long ball. Werder pushed forward and scored the equaliser through Theo Gebre Selassie in the 85th minute.

 

Florian Kohfeldt took his squad to South Africa to prepare them for the Rückrunde (Photo: nordphoto).

Kohfeldt on the game: “All the signs are saying that we’re very well-prepared. We covered a lot in training, and I get the sense that the boys are ready.” The Werder boss is expecting a team who “will fight us with everything they’ve got.” Hannover’s current league position does not mean that Werder can expect an easy game: “I’m convinced that André Breitenreiter has used the time during the winter break to prepare for the game against us. They’ll have a clear plan on Saturday,” added Kohfeldt. From his team, the boss wants “us to be very busy, both with and without the ball. We want to decide what happens with the ball. We know that the first game of the Rückrunde will be very important for us. We absolutely want to win,” he concluded.

Squad news: Florian Kohfeldt has Philip Bargfrede available again for the game against Hannover: “Philipp Bargfrede is ready to play. The question is how long he can play for,” said the boss. Johannes Eggestein should also be available for the game, but Yuya Osako will miss out as he’s still playing for Japan in the Asian Cup.

Martin Harnik will face his former club this weekend (Photo: nordphoto).

The opponents: Hannover currently sit 18th in the Bundesliga table, and are only above bottom-spot on goal difference. However, things often change after the winter break and they could turn their fortunes around in the upcoming 17 games. The club spent their winter break in Marbella and were unbeaten in their friendlies, including a 4-1 win over Heracles Almelo. Niklas Füllkrug and Ihlas Bebou are both out with long term injuries.

Recent transfers: Hannover have dipped into the transfer market a couple of times in order to bolster their squad. They’ve signed Kevin Akpoguma, who wasn’t getting much game time at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim. The centre back will move on loan and will be looking to sure up a leaky defence. Nicolai Müller has also made the move to Hannover, this time from Eintracht Frankfurt. He’ll be tasked with scoring the goals for his new side, playing alongside Bobby Wood. Both signings have a lot of Bundesliga experience and could prove vital in their fight to stay up.

The officials: Marco Fritz will referee the game, with Dominik Schaal and Marcel Pelgrim his assistant referees. The fourth official is Sven Waschitzki, with Günter Perl and Thorben Siewer the video assistants in Cologne.

 
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