SV Werder will be back in action against Borussia Mönchengladbach at the wohninvest WESERSTADION on Saturday, 4th May (15:30 CEST). The Green-Whites are looking to pick up another three points in their 1000th home game following two consecutive wins, while their opponents come into the game under pressure as they fight to distance themselves from the relegation places. Ole Werner explained in his press conference on Thursday that it is even more important for the hosts “to be at 100 percent”.
Squad update: Jens Stage is back in action following his suspension, whilst the returning Isak Hansen-Aorøen is also an option for head coach Ole Werner. Amos Pieper, Skelly Alvero and Justin Njinmah remain unavailable for SV Werder Bremen. Jiri Pavlenka returned to team training on Friday and could be included in the matchday squad.
Ole Werner on the opposition: “Gladbach are a team with a lot of quality. They are extremely strong in transition and have lots of pace in the final third. It’s even more important that we make as few errors as possible. Defending their set pieces will be a challenge – we can look at how we defended in our own box in Augsburg.”
Previous meetings: The Green-Whites have faced off against Borussia Mönchengladbach on 113 occasions previously. SVW have won 41 of those meetings, whilst Borussia have come out on top 45 times. The last two clashes have been evenly-matched, with the two sides sharing the points on both occasions. Werder ran out winners in the home game in the 2022/23 season courtesy of an early brace from Niclas Füllkrug and a goal from Marvin Ducksch, after which the Green-Whites found the back of the net twice more to secure a 5-1 win for the hosts.
Effective from the flanks: No team has scored more goals from open-play crosses than SV Werder Bremen. The Green-Whites lead the way with ten goals, and are closely followed by Gladbach. Mitchell Weiser and Franck Honorat both play on the right-hand side for their respective sides and are renowned for their crossing ability, with both players setting up five goals from crosses so far this season. David Raum is currently top of the charts, having set up six goals from crosses. However, Werder’s Weiser is particularly effective, having put in far fewer crosses (61) than Raum (137).
