Werder Bremen vs St. Pauli preview: Two teams looking to make a statement

Werder Bremen

Things haven’t been easy for Werder Bremen.

They were dealt a brutal hand when it came to their opening schedule, and their results reflect it. After only five games Bremen has already played against Eintracht Frankfurt, Bayer Leverkusen, Freiburg, and Bayern Munich. In those contests they’ve only picked up one point, but they did secure a win in the meantime against Borussia Mönchengladbach.

Werder aren’t even playing too poorly, they are just falling short in the key moments. Their last game against Munich was a good example of how the campaign is going. Setting up defensively, they were holding up alright until conceding an ugly opener, with a cross getting flicked-on and then redirecting off a different player and in.

They responded well, and even had some of the ball themselves. Things changed on the stroke of halftime, though, when Harry Kane cleverly positioned himself to draw a penalty, even if the contact may not have been enough for it. He slotted the spot-kick, and then poked home another loose ball in the second half to put the game away. The Bavarians added a 4th with five minutes to go. 

If it wasn’t for the Green-White's brutal schedule, supporters would be a lot more concerned. Four points from five isn’t a healthy return, and it sees them enter this weekend in 15th place. They’re even behind bitter rivals Hamburg.

However, there’s enough reason for optimism. Youngsters like Mio Backhaus and Karim Coulibaly have impressed, while new signings like Samuel Mbangula, Yukinari Sugawara, and Cameron Puertas are already making an impact in the lineup.

The next few games will be key in how this season goes for Bremen. Their opponents are much more beatable than before, with Heidenheim, Union Berlin, Mainz, and Wolfsburg all coming up soon. This run starts Saturday, with a tricky St. Pauli side pulling in to town.

Werder could pick up a win here and start a little streak, shooting them back up the table and giving hope to the fanbase. However, if the club continues to drop points, then it’s going to feel like it’s time to panic.

It’s time to step up or step out of the way.

Team news

Die Werderaner are without a number of defenders, with Maximilian Wöber, Olivier Deman, Niklas Stark, and Mitchell Weiser all injured, while starting goalkeeper Mio Backhaus is unavailable for another week. 

Predicted lineups

Hein, Sugawara, Coulibaly, Freidl, Agu, Lynen, Stage, Mbangula, Schmid, Puertas, Boniface

St. Pauli

St. Pauli had made an excellent start to the year, but they’ve faded as of late.

They were involved in an opening day thriller, coming back from 3-1 down to steal a 3-3 draw at home to Borussia Dortmund. Die Kiezkicker then traveled to their most hated opposition, Hamburg, and came away with a 2-0 victory. Life got even better as they beat Augsburg 2-1.

Suddenly St. Pauli found themselves near the top of the Bundesliga standings. It didn’t last long. The club has dropped their last two contests, losing 2-0 away to Stuttgart and 2-1 at home to Bayer Leverkusen. They haven’t fallen too far, to be fair, currently sat in a very comfortable 9th.

Many thought the forward-thinking club were prime relegation candidates last campaign following the departure of Fabian Hürzeler, but they haven’t missed a step with new man Alexander Blessin. He molded them into a defensive powerhouse, and now they’re adding goals to their gameplan. 23-year-old loanee Andreas Hountondji already has three to his name. 

Now St. Pauli have their sights set on defeating their northern neighbors. They’ve not been able to do that in any of the last four meetings this decade, but they’ll like their chances of ending that run on this occasion. 

Team news

St. Pauli will be missing a few key players, as Jackson Irvine, David Nemeth, and Ricky-Jade Jones are all currently injured.

Predicted lineups

Vasilj, Wahl, Smith, Dzwigala, Saliakas, Sands, Fujita, Oppie, Sinani, Hountondji, Lage