Werder played out a 1-1 draw in a friendly away to FC St. Pauli last night. The hosts took the lead shortly before half-time through Litka, but Aron Johansson fired in the equaliser in the closing stages of the match. Santiago Garcia was able to celebrate his return to the side in the Millerntor-Stadion, coming back after three long months out through injury.
Line-up and formation: Santiago Garcia was back in the starting eleven for the first time in three months, which was probably the happiest news regarding Alexander Nouri’s team selection. The left-back was part of a four-man back line also including Lamine Sané, Lukas Fröde and Robert Bauer. Alongside captain Clemens Fritz in midfield, U-23 player Mohamed Aidara was given the opportunity to prove himself. On the wings were Fin Bartels - who was making a return to his old club - and Florian Kainz. Nouri opted for an attack spearheaded by Aron Johansson and a second ex-St. Pauli player in the form of Lennart Thy. In the absence of Jaroslav Drobny, who picked up an injury with the Czech national side, Felix Wiedwald took up his usual spot between the posts for the game against Werder’s second-tier opponents.
In awful weather conditions, both teams tried to find their rhythm. The Green-Whites slowly gained the upper hand in the game, and began to exert more pressure on their hosts. They could not find the telling touch however, coming closest through shots from Clemens Fritz and Aron Johansson. The American’s effort in particular would have been a stunning individual goal, had the home side’s goalkeeper not saved well with his legs.
Werder then suffered a setback against the run of play in the 39th minute, as Maurice Litka made the most of St. Pauli’s first shot on goal to give the second-tier team a 1-0 lead at half time in Hamburg. Amongst a host of changes at the break and throughout the second period, Clemens Fritz made way, and Garcia, one of only four Green-Whites to play the full 90 minutes, was handed the captain’s armband.
Initially, the second half was a mirror image of the first - a scrappy affair without much end substance, before visitors got on top once again. Florian Kainz in particular was unlucky not to equalise, lashing a free-kick against the crossbar. Werder were finally rewarded for their dominance in the 83rd minute, when Aron Johansson slotted home from Luca Zander’s cross to draw the Bundesliga side level.
Werder continued to push for a winner after that, but it never came. Overall, it was a game played in difficult conditions and light on goalscoring opportunities, and the best news that came out of it was undoubtedly the return of Santiago Garcia, who got 90 minutes of game time under his belt.
Alexander Nouri: “We had a lot of players away on international duty, which meant we were missing a bit of consistency. But it was important that the remaining players could get a bit of match practice in a competitive environment, and that no one picked up any injuries. It was a tough game against well-organised opponents, who did not give us much space. We could have defended a little bit better in some situations, and we want to keep improving our solidity at the back.”
Fin Bartels: “Because we were playing in an unusual formation, we found it difficult to get going at first. It was a decent challenge, and we had to give it our all for the full 90 minutes. Alexander Nouri has got a clear plan that we have to keep working on. The first few games have been a good start, but now we need to improve defensively to concede fewer goals.”
