Eintracht Frankfurt manager Niko Kovac said that the pressure is on Bremen this weekend when the two sides face each other on Sunday at 17:30 CET. Werder manager Alexander Nouri agreed with his statement in the pre-match press conference on Friday. “Eintracht Frankfurt are in a more comfortable position than we are.” However, Nouri then added that playing under pressure could be a good thing.”We believe that we can win the match. We just have to find the right answers.”
Find out below whether there are recent good memories that could help the Werder players this weekend, why some of the Eintracht players have become such a talking point and what kind of plans Niko Kovac has up his sleeve.
Did you know that…
…Werder escaped relegation by beating Eintracht Frankfurt on the last day of last season?
“Djilobodji scores, the crowd are going wild! Djilobodji pokes it home following a goalmouth scramble to make it 1-0!” Werder managed to escape relegation at the very last minute against Eintracht Frankfurt last season thanks to Djilobodji’s goal. Just over six months later, Werder are hoping for an equally pleasing result against Eintracht Frankfurt.
…a solid defence will be facing a strong attack?
Eintracht Frankfurt have put on a strong defensive performance in their last few matches. Their 1-0 win against FC Köln two weeks ago was their fourth match in a row without conceding an opposition goal. Eintracht Frankfurt goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky only had four shots to deal with in these four matches. However, Werder’s consistency upfront will give them confidence that they can break down Eintracht’s strong defensive wall on Sunday. Werder have scored at least once in every home fixture for over a year. Werder have scored in all of their Bundesliga matches this season except for on the opening day against FC Bayern München. Only RB Leipzig and FC Bayern München have scored in every game.
…both teams have had nine different goalscorers already this season?
Only FC Bayern München can top this record. The record champions have ten different goalscorers so far this season. Only Serge Gnabry has scored more than once this season (four times) and eight other Werder players have scored a goal this season. Marco Fabian and Alex Meier have both scored twice this season for Eintracht Frankfurt whilst seven other players have scored just one goal this season.
… Werder have picked up 19 of their last 21 points at the Weser-Stadion?
Even though Werder lost to SC Freiburg in their last home game, the Green-Whites are still best on home turf. The home wins against Wolfsburg and Leverkusen provided an important lift to the team’s morale and Werder have managed to win their last two home games against Eintracht Frankfurt 1-0. Hopefully it will be three-times lucky for Bremen!
… Frankfurt coach Niko Kovac has negative memories of SVW both as a player and a coach?
The Croat has worn the shirt of four different Bundesliga clubs in his time. However Kovac lost six of his 15 duels with Werder and on five occasions he and his team came away with just a point, meaning that he has only tasted victory against SVW four times. Kovac has faced Bremen once in his so far short career as a coach, ending in a defeat on the last day of the previous season, which is surely one of his most disappointing moments in his managerial career.
… a comeback from Claudio Pizarro would make the Frankfurt alter his gameplan?
Having been substituted on against Schalke 04, Claudio Pizarro could celebrate his comeback in the starting XI against Frankfurt after he completed the entire week of training. Niko Kovac is certainly somebody that Pizarro has known for a long time. The Peruvian did the double at FC Bayern with Kovac in 2003 and his former teammate is prepared should Pizarro in fact be in the starting line-up. “If Pizarro (and Kruse) starts the match, then we have a plan B and C ready,” said Kovac. He should be warned that Werder’s striker has a good record against Eintracht, scoring six times in nine matches.
