The boss' thoughts: The postponement of Tuesday’s DFB-Pokal tie in Regensburg meant that Werder were unexpectedly handed extra preparation time for this weekend’s Bundesliga fixture. “Perhaps our build-up to the Köln game has been more focused as a result, but I wouldn’t necessarily speak of an advantage or a disadvantage,” said Kohfeldt. While Köln will likely have to compensate for absentees at centre-back, the SVW head coach has more or less a full squad to choose from. The opposition’s inevitable tinkering makes them slightly tricker to predict, however. “We’re expecting them to change their system and I’m fully anticipating to come up against a very compact Köln team.” The Werder boys are determined to show that they can find solutions against a defensive setup, unlike in the meeting earlier this season. “Our goal as Werder Bremen has to be being able to grind out results in games like that and not letting them pass us by,” added the 38-year-old.
The last meeting: A deep-sitting Köln side gave Werder a headache in the first Bundesliga match-up in this campaign. The Green-Whites struggled to find a way through the visitors’ backline and went behind through an unlucky Niklas Moisander own goal in the 67th minute. A handball from Sebastian Bornauw gave Leonardo Bittencourt the opportunity to equalise from the penalty spot against his former club and he took full advantage, sealing the final 1-1 draw in the 82nd minute.
