“We were disappointed, but we are still remaining positive”

Veljkovic’s long diagonal ball helped set up Niclas Füllkrug’s opening goal in the 3-0 win over VfL Bochum. He repeated the trick twice against Leverkusen, first setting up Marvin Ducksch’s big chance and then starting the move for his goal a few minutes later. “This is one of my strengths,” revealed Veljkovic. “It’s worked well over the last few games, but sometimes you don’t need to play as many long balls.”

It was easier to play down the middle of the park against Leverkusen due to their back-five, according to Veljkovic. Although Werder played well against Bayer 04, they still ended with no points and therefore received a lot of criticism. Veljkovic himself analysed the game in the same way he normally does: on his own first and then with his father. “Mistakes are normal in football and that includes us at the back,” said the Serbian defender, who will be on international duty with his nation next week. “We need to better on the ball. The last moment before a goal is not always the decisive one.”

There are a number of things that the defender wants Werder to do in Friday’s game at Borussia Mönchengladbach (17/3, 20:30 CET). They include cutting out mistakes, defending as a team, being better with possession and allowing fewer counter-attacks. “We have to be more decisive in both boxes too,” demanded Veljkovic, who is still confident despite back-to-back defeats. “We knew that we would lose some games and we will just remain calm. We were obviously disappointed, but we are still remaining positive. We want to play well and get the points on Friday night.”

????️ Milos Veljkovic on the reverse fixture against @borussia_en: “We have great memories of the home game earlier in season. Nevertheless, it’s a different situation now and we have to give 100 percent again to win.”#werderpic.twitter.com/50n5AUFiRV
— SV Werder Bremen EN (@werderbremen_en) March 15, 2023