It's getting nearer and nearer. In just nine days' time, Werder will be involved in their first competitive match of the 2017/18 season. The final pre-season friendly before the Green-Whites take on the Würzburger Kickers in the DFB Pokal is against Spanish outfit Valencia this Saturday (18:00 CEST) at the Weser-Stadion.
Find out who Lamine Sané and co. should watch out for and what happened the last time these two sides met below...
Did you know that
… Werder and Valencia have contested a final? In the pre-season leading up to the 2015/16 season, the two teams met in the Audi-Quattro-Cup final in Salzburg. Werder won the final 3-2 on penalties with Julian von Haacke, Levin Öztunali and Janek Sternberg all scoring from the spot.
... the last competitive match between the sides was seven years ago? In the 2009/10 season Werder met the six time Spanish champions in the last 16 of the Europa League. After a 1-1 draw in the first leg, the second leg at the Weser-Stadion ended in an incredible 4-4 draw. The Green-Whites had trailed 3-1 at half-time. The goals came from Hugo Almeida, Torsten Frings, Marko Marin and Claudio Pizarro, but sadly Werder went out on away goals.
… a former Werder player is currently under contract at Valencia? Defender Aymen Abdennour was on loan at Werder for six months during the 2009/10 season from Tunisian side Etoile Sportive du Sahel. He played eight matches for Werder during his short stay on the Weser. The 27-year-old has also represented Toulouse and Monaco and has made 35 La Liga appearances for Valencia. With 57 international caps to his name, Abdennour is a leading player for the Tunisian national team.
… Valencia have a European champion in their ranks? Werder can look forward to an exciting game against the Spanish side on Saturday. Valencia possess some top attacking talent including Portuguese European champion Nani, although the former Manchester United winger looks set to miss the match because of a knee injury. Werder will have to watch out for Valencia striker Rodrigo, however. The cousin of Bayern Munich star Thiago struck five times last season. Italian Simone Zaza recently joined the 'Blanquinegros' from Juventus.
