Match Report: Werder Bremen (H)

Pre-match

In a very unusual occurrence for Union of late, we came into today's game with no pressure and nothing to play for.

After last season's the to-the-wire fight for survival, it felt nice to simply turn up at the Alte Försterei knowing that nothing turned on the result.

For us at least. The sold-out visitors from Bremen had plenty to play for, with a shot at Europe still on the cards.

The armchair managers amongst us would have packed the team with exciting youth prospects, but this being real life, we saw the exact same team we always see.

After Leite's freakish larynx injury - wow that must have been scary - Vogt took up the left side of the defensive three. Rothe continued at left wing back.

For the visitors, we got a good look at rumoured incoming signing Ollie Burke who started up front, getting a cheeky 'Fußball Gott' chant as the teams were read out.

First Half

On this showing, Burke would be a useful signing, because he gave Vogt nightmares for much of the game.

You could tell we were somewhat relaxed because the entire team was sleeping peacefully when Bremen just cut right through us with less than two minutes on the clock.

Our left side was a problem, Rothe tending to play high and Vogt better-equipped in the middle of the back three rather than the left.

Bremen exploited it right away. Vogt is no slouch but doesn't accelerate particularly quickly. A simple ball from the constantly-moaning Weiser down the right had Burke blasting past him and into space. His low centre was pinged off the post by Ducksch, but Stage was the only one who reacted, tucking into an empty net.

It didn't get any prettier for a while. To a man, we were full of heavy touches, misplaced passes and hopeful punts. Nothing would stick and Bremen were back on us time and again.

Burke and Agu were creating havoc on the flanks, Schmid with tons of space in the middle. Trimmel desperately covered Agu a couple of times, nervy defending from corners, Rönnow screaming at people, justifiably. It was all a bit ugly.

Our keeper extraordinaire had to be alert more than once to mop up dangerous crosses, and made a flying low save to his left to prevent a second.

A rare break forward saw Hollerbach shimmy across the Bremen box, teeing up Trimmel to cross for Ilic, who battled to win the header but could only plant it straight at the keeper.

But really it was all Bremen, and when the second came it was no surprise. Trimmel initially did brilliantly to win a sliding tackle, to resounding applause from the crowd. Then everyone just sort of stopped, Trimmel hesitated and got robbed, Bremen suddenly flooding forward.

Stage's first goal had been a tap in but this time he just kept dribbling while we backed off, before unleashing a well-hit shot from the edge of the box that Rönnow had no chance with.

A good finish, but a goal entirely of our own making and two down after just 15 minutes.

As ever, the opposition sailing into a comfortable lead did nothing to dampen the party atmosphere in the stadium, but we sensed this could be a long afternoon on the pitch.

The great strength of this team though is to be completely unaffected by the current scoreline. Despite the recent fireworks of the Stuttgart game, we seem to follow a bit of a pattern of starting slow and growing into the game.

So it proved again today. While Bremen were still well on top, we began to actually pass to each other and disrupt them a bit.

Back in our own half, Rothe got into a painful tangle with on of their forwards, both staying down after colliding on a 50/50.

He didn't look fully comfortable, but somehow recovered enough to lope up the field and get us a hilariously unmerited goal a few minutes later.

Corners and free kicks are always a source of attacking threat for us due to our preponderence of massive units.

Trimmel floated one in which was initially cleared. We worked it back to the corner where Hollerbach lost out, but the clearance only went as far as Trimmel again.

Our ageless captain put in another delicious ball, Ilic and Rothe ganged up on the defence, and Rothe looped the slowest-motion header I've ever seen into the far corner.

Quite honestly, we didn't deserve it up to that point, but as the lady behind us - whose name I didn't catch but was geuinely the fount of all football knowledge - in the stand noted, football is 70% psychology, and we were transformed after the goal.

With the crowd roaring the team on, another corner broke to Hollerbach, but his daisy-cutter was straight at the goalie.

Hollerbach was having one of those days where nothing much worked, but did manage to wriggle free on the left and tee up Haberer. His shot from the left edge of the box was a beauty, but palmed wide at full stretch by the keeper.

We finished the half on top but a goal behind, Bremen probably feeling hard done by not to have a two goal cushion. But they were definitely rattled, picking up yellow cards for dissent.

Second Half

Our upward trajectory carried on into the second half. The centre backs sat a little deeper to take the sting out of Bremen's quick attackers, and we were able to mop up threats more easily and spring forward on the break.

A sudden downpour didn't help Bremen's quick and precise passing, and we looked the better team.

Doekhi in particular did a good job of striding up and setting us loose on the counter, where we moved the ball quickly but with purpose, less of the hit and hope of the first half.

Burke nearly nipped past Vogt on the halfway line, but as good future teammates they both ducked the tackle a bit and it broke in our favour.

The game became quite open, both teams prone to pressing high and then realising there was a massive gap where their midfield should be.

On one such break, Rothe and Haberer got up on the left with Hollerbach. Hollerbach hared for the penalty spot as Haberer sent in a perfect cross, right over the defender's head. Hollerbach had a free header but was stretching for it, and couldn't power his header in.

On the next move, we came barreling in from the right via Hollerbach after Doekhi absolutely flattened somebody with the very edge of hard but fair tackle.

Bremen's back line were suddenly all over the place. A low cross from deep didn't look too dangerous, but it took a nick off someone and deflected into the path of Ilic, all alone on the penalty spot.

Moments earlier we had been discussing Ilic with the people around us, general opinion being that we should sign him.

He did the hard part, an almost Bergkamp-esque touch and spin in one movement putting him right in front of goal with nobody around.

We were half-celebrating as he rolled a cool finish past the keeper. Sadly he also rolled it cooly past the post, a galling miss. We thought it had been called for a blush-sparing offside, but it didn't look it.

'Well, despite that I still think we should sign him', remarked somebody amongst the groans.

The game had a strange quality to it, it never really felt like we were a goal down in the second half, none of the usual nerves and angst as we all enjoyed a pulsating game of football with nothing riding on it.

The crowd was loud, from all sides, the Waldseite mixing up the chants and everybody getting into it, Khedira waving his arms at the crowd in his inimitable style.

As we ticked past 65 minutes Baumgart rang the changes, Skarke, Ljubicic and the speedy young Preu on.

Preu immediately got loose on the right wing but his cross was bundled out.

He had one rough moment at the back when his pass went straight to the opposition, but it's good to see him getting minutes. He looks a bundle of energy, pace and skill.

Schäfer had been getting some joy getting forward and linked up well with Preu, skinning the fullback with a dummy through his legs that drew appreciative oohs from the Gegengerade.

We thought we had the equaliser from a corner, I didn't see who but one of the defenders getting a free header but straight at the keeper again.

We entered the last 10 minutes still pushing, Bremen having nothing left in attack, Rönnow needing a sprawling punch to deal with a dangerous cross but otherwise not too bothered.

Baumgart rolled the dice, bringing Volland on for Vogt and Benes for the tiring Schäfer. It was a gamble that paid off!

We joked that Volland would come on and score, he didn't but he did play a role in the equaliser.

I can't remember if it was the same incident, but Khedira 'used his body well', as they say, to earn us a free kick just past the halfway line. A clear red card it seemed to us from a not at all biased perspective. Every foul is a clear red card in these parts.

Benes sneakily moved the ball left for a better angle. With possibly his first touch of the game, he curled in a nice, deep ball to the far post. Volland produced a heck of a leap to push the ball back across goal, Querfeld looked set to bury it but was hauled down as he jumped, thousands of Unioner screaming for a penalty.

The ref was unmoved, but the ball carried on and found its way to Rothe. He did very well to bring it under control with Bremen defenders all over him.

Benes, meanwhile, had raced up after taking the free kick, arriving in the box as Rothe laid the ball back to him.

Benes hasn't seen too much action this season but that wand of a left foot cannot be doubted. With possibly his second touch of the game, he sauntered onto the ball and casually swished an unbelievable outswinging strike up and into the top corner.

The Bremen keeper coud only watch and admire as it arced past him, pandemonium breaking out in the stands as we fell about, a bundle of limbs and joy tumbling everywhere.

A VAR check threatened to ruin it, but the goal stood and we pushed for a winner.

We had well and truly pissed on Bremen's chips, as we say in my part of the world.

The winner so nearly came. Again, we won the ball in midfield and surged forward in numbers. Hollerbach led the charge as he so often does, but took on a speculative shot when there were good passes right and left.

In fairness, he was absolutely spent, the last kick of the game coming from him breaking down the right but sending a cross too high and deep before he slumped to the turf, utterly cooked.

Bremen in the end were probably a little fortunate to take a point, quite a turnaround after the opening period.

Union again showed resilience, pride and craft to drag this one back, and we serenaded the players long past the whistle.

That's 8 unbeaten now for us, a remarkable run to be proud of.

We capped off the day with some well-earned beers to soothe hoarse throats at the Abseitsfalle, one of our number somehow drenching herself from head to toe in a fountain of Pilsner; a beer drop for the ages.

It's a law of the Alte Försterei: if you don't get a beer shower during the game, one will find you anyway.

A satisfying day all round - much more fun to claw back a two goal deficit than throw away a two goal lead.

No better place to get covered in beer on a Saturday afternoon.

Eisern!

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By @MarkJB on Bluesky