Three days after the disappointing 6-2 defeat to Bayer 04 Leverkusen in the Bundesliga, Werder travel to the Lübecker Stadion to play against SC Weiche Flensburg 08.
Three days after the disappointing 6-2 defeat to Bayer 04 Leverkusen in the Bundesliga, Werder travel to the Lübecker Stadion to play against SC Weiche Flensburg 08.
DFB-Pokal evenings are always special and for Werder head coach Florian Kohfeldt, they are always “very important games where you can win a trophy having played relatively few games.” Werder’s sporting director Frank Baumann summed up the essence of the DFB-Pokal and its importance for the team by saying, “The cup offers all teams the shortest route to playing in Europe,” and because of this he feels the players are ambitious and want to go a long way in the competition.
An “important and very special games” are still to come if Werder manage to proceed to the next round of the DFB-Pokal on Wednesday. The preparation for a team in a lower division is no different to preparation for a team in the Bundesliga. “We have a lot of video footage available, just like we have against Bundesliga opponents. I have watched two Flensburg games myself and Thomas Horsch was there last Friday,” said Kohfeldt.
The 36-year-old wants to see a convincing victory by his team. He demands, “We must be fully focussed and vigilant because there will always be moments in the game where the opposition will have chances.” Nuri Sahin agrees with this and said, “We want to play again in the next round of the cup.”
There will not be any lack of motivation on the part of Werder as the cup is all or nothing to them. Sahin himself has had many positive but also negative experiences in the cup over his 13 year career so far. “It’s just an extremely cool competition. I still remember going out in the first round but I have also got to the final four times,” Sahin recalled. His coach is also eager to compete in the cup and to go as far as possible. The game will be on Wednesday (18:30 CET).
