Alexander Nouri started to analyse this afternoon’s game as soon as Werder began their journey back to Bremen. “I want to watch the whole match again,” said the Werder manager. “It’s important to give the players a day or two to unwind.” He figured that the main reason for the 3-1 loss against Schalke 04 was their careless defending for the first two goals. “We were too casual and gave the game away far too easily. It’s frustrating that such little mistakes can change a whole game,” said Nouri.
WERDER.DE spoke to the players after the full-time whistle and gathered their reactions.
Alexander Nouri: “It’s a frustrating result. We stuck to our game plan and played well in the first 35 minutes. But then we were too careless in defence and gave the game away. It’s so frustrating that such little mistakes can change a whole game. We have to stay more focused throughout the 90 minutes and do whatever we can to prevent the opponent from scoring.”
Frank Baumann: “The team did a lot of things very well. I can’t fault anyone for their effort, everyone got back to defend well and we stuck to our game plan. But we can’t be as careless as we were today at the back. We need to stay fully focused for the full 90 minutes. We didn’t do that today and therefore we deserved to lose. We have to work on our concentration.”
Zlatko Junuzovic: “We weren’t focused enough at important moments. We made little mistakes which led to us conceding two goals in the first half. Apart from that, we played quite well. Of course we’re disappointed that we have come away from the match with no points. But we have to carry on improving together as a team. No team has really thrashed us. But we will only get the results if we always give it our all.”
Milos Veljkovic: “We could have got more out of the match, especially as we played so well at the beginning. Then we let in two goals unnecessary. The strikers have an advantage when you’re watching the ball as a defender, because they can decide where they want to go. We have to react quicker as defenders."
Fin Bartels: “I don’t know if having the international break is an advantage for us. The fact is that this result will be on our minds for the next two weeks. I hope that we will able to block it out. It’s now important that we quickly regain our focus and continue to work hard. Even if it is difficult to do, we have to be open and analyse our mistakes.”
Alexander Nouri: “We obviously have a few important players going on international duty, but we will work hard with the players that are with us and try and use the time to work on the mistakes we made. We are following a strategy which we one hundred percent believe in and which we want to continue working hard on.”
Frank Baumann: “If we concede three goals every game then it will be difficult. We know that and we will be working very hard to rectify it in the coming weeks.”
Frank Baumann: “We are delighted that Claudio has returned. He will give us more options going forward, but we know that it will take time for him to return to form.”
Santiago Garcia: “I was really happy that Claudio was able to play again today. The opposition also showed respect when he was substituted on. When Max Kruse and Philipp Bargfrede also return, we will be a completely different team.”
Zlatko Junuzovic: “Everyone benefits from Claudio’s routine and his intelligence. He gives us a certain security, as he is able to play in almost every situation. We need all of our players who are now coming back from injury because it adds to the competition for places. It means that each player goes into each game as if it was their last.”
Milos Veljkovic: “Claudio has a huge impact for us. He simply exudes experience. You give him the ball and you know he will do something with it.”
Zlatko Junuzovic: “You can see that Serge is teeming with confidence. He has the tempo and coolness and is often very hard to stop. He has thoroughly deserved his call up to the Germany national team.”
Frank Baumann: “We are really happy that Serge has been selected. In the last few weeks with Werder and before that with Olympic team, he has deserved his call up. However, he still has so much more to give and we are delighted that we can continue on this path with him.”
