Werder began the 2021/22 season with a 1-1 draw at home to Hannover 96. Before SVW start focusing completely on their next game in Düsseldorf, head coach Markus Anfang reflected on that match at the start of the new week. “We started the second half well, took the lead and then conceded 10 minutes later. Having been fighting for survival for two years, you’re obviously scared of losing. We need to start winning lots of games to really help the rebuild,” said Anfang.
Markus Anfang also spoke about the upcoming game in Düsseldorf, players returning to training and the 2. Bundesliga.
...the Hannover game: “We didn’t play how we wanted to for the full 90 minutes and ultimately weren’t creative enough. A lot of players were somewhat disappointed after the game because we didn’t play to our best until the final whistle. Their goal really threw us off track. We need to remember the feeling of winning. A lot of it is down to belief.”
…players returning to training: “We’ll have to see how Abed, Eren and Rappo manage this week. They’ve trained individually recently and were able to join team training at the start of this week. We will keep an eye on how they deal with the workload. Ludde hasn’t trained with the lads yet, that will take a while still. Marco got involved very quickly and is doing well in training.”
...Kevin Möhwald and Milos Veljkovic: "Kevin has been tested a lot and will join the team tomorrow. Nevertheless, he’ll still be partly isolating, as he’ll only be with the team on the pitch. Milos will also be tested tomorrow and may join training too. We’ll have to take things day by day with the pair of them.”
...the 2. Bundesliga: “Games in this division will be totally different for the lads. We’ll have more of the ball and hopefully more chances too in the future. We’ve gone from underdogs to favourites. That’s a different kind of pressure and a different situation. We need to try and create some kind of identity. We don’t want to be starting at square one again once the transfer window shuts on 31st August. We need to be settled.”
…Düsseldorf: I can still remember playing them twice with Darmstadt and losing despite good performances, so I hope we can get a win by performing well. Every match is difficult in the second division. We’re playing against a good team on Saturday, who have been together for a long time and have experience in this division. Düsseldorf are a very settled team. They’ve already gone through the process we are currently experiencing and have a more settled squad.”
...academy player Fabio Chiarodia: "Fabio is only 16. You have to be careful with players at that age. He’s got a lot of potential, and if the chance comes, we will try to get him involved with the first team as often as we can. We’re currently rebuilding though.”
...his first competitive game at the wohninvest WESERSTADION: "The atmosphere and the fans were both really positive. They tried to push us on when we were on the attack. The overall mood was really good.”
