Werder Bremen vs Hamburg preview: The Nordderby returns with a lot on the line

Werder Bremen vs Hamburg preview: The Nordderby returns with a lot on the line Werder Bremen The pressure is starting to mount on Werder Bremen, and things could get scary again if this weekend doesn’t go well. Last week was a big chance for Bremen to put some real space between themselves and the relegation picture, but they weren’t able to take advantage. They went on the road to Köln, and went into an early hole when the hosts converted a penalty kick in the 7th minute.

Things went from bad to worse 15 minutes later when Werder lost captain Marco Friedl following a straight red card. It was a harsh decision since the defender fell more than he tackled the opposing player, but he was the last man. The deficit was doubled past the hour mark, and even though Romano Schmid pulled one back via a spot-kick of his own, it wasn’t enough at the end of the day.

The performance was a tough one to analyze. The Green-Whites were not at their best, of course, but they didn’t play too poorly. They made a few early mistakes, and those proved to really hurt them.

However, for extended stages they moved the ball well and defended as a unit, and if some things went a little different they could’ve easily gotten at least a point from proceedings. Bremen are now in a tricky spot. Fortunately for them they’re not in any of the relegation places, and they are seven points clear of 17th place Wolfsburg with only a few games to go.