Line-up and formation: Ole Werner was forced to make some chances for the Matchday 6 clash against SCF after two of his regular starters sustained injuries in Werder’s 4-3 away victory against Hoffenheim last weekend.Captain Marco Friedl, who returned to the squad on Saturday following a two-game suspension, replaced Niklas Stark (muscle problems) in the backline. After suffering a mild concussion in the hard-fought win over Hoffenheim, Senne Lynen was also absent from the encounter with Freiburg, providing Skelly Alvero with the chance to make his first Bundesliga start of the season.
Starting XI: Zetterer – Jung, Friedl, Malatini, Köhn, Stage, Alvero, Agu, Schmid, Weiser, Ducksch.
Bench: Kolke – Pieper, Deman, Bittencourt, Grüll, Hansen-Aarøen, Topp, Burke.
All to play for at the break
First-half highlights:
17th minute: Schmid whips a cross into the back post, where Ducksch is waiting to nod it into the path of Agu. The 25-year-old pulls the trigger on his first touch, but Atubolu spares Freiburg’s blushes and palms the ball away off the goalline.
33rd minute: SCF take things up a notch and combine well in the Werder penalty area, finding Doan in space. The forward picks out the bottom corner, but his effort is blocked.
45th minute: Freiburg come close again just prior to the break. Grifo tries his luck from the left-hand side, but his effort ricochets off the post.
Doan steps up to the plate
Second-half highlights:
55th minute: Freiburg regain possession in the middle and Adamu races forward, yet Jung comes to Malatini’s aid and matches the striker’s pace, winning the ball back and clearing the danger.
59th minute: After coming off the bench just two minutes prior, Bittencourt tries his luck from outside the box, but Atubolu is on hand to keep the scoreline level.
75th minute: Freiburg take the lead. Doan hurtles towards goal, cuts inside, and directs a low strike towards the bottom corner. His effort deflects off the foot of captain Friedl, leaving Zetterer helpless as the ball flies into the back of the net.
90th minute +2: Weiser spins on his first touch and strikes a last-gasp effort towards the bottom corner, yet Atubolu has other ideas and leaps into action, denying Werder the equaliser.
90th minute +5: Full-time. SVW lose 1-0 at home to SC Freiburg.
Summary: SVW suffered a narrow defeat after a fairly even 90 minutes of football at the Weserstadion. The first half was a back-and-forth affair, with both teams creating chances in the final third and Werder coming painfully close to scoring early on through Felix Agu. SCF piled on the pressure after the break and eventually reaped the rewards of their hard work with a goal following a deflection from Werder’s captain. The Green-Whites continued to battle hard for an equaliser and gave a final push in the closing stages, but nevertheless had to admit defeat to Freiburg in front of the home crowd.
All to play for at the break
First-half highlights:
17th minute: Schmid whips a cross into the back post, where Ducksch is waiting to nod it into the path of Agu. The 25-year-old pulls the trigger on his first touch, but Atubolu spares Freiburg’s blushes and palms the ball away off the goalline.
33rd minute: SCF take things up a notch and combine well in the Werder penalty area, finding Doan in space. The forward picks out the bottom corner, but his effort is blocked.
45th minute: Freiburg come close again just prior to the break. Grifo tries his luck from the left-hand side, but his effort ricochets off the post.