Werder Bremen vs RB Leipzig preview: Ole Werner returns to the Weserstadion

Werder Bremen

It seems like Werder Bremen were able to save themselves from doomsday in the final game before the international break.

They made the trip to 17th place Wolfsburg with only four points separating the two sides. It was a true relegation battle, and the loser knew they’d be in big trouble in terms of the rest of the season. As a result, the contest was a tight and tense affair.

The hosts came out the blocks hot, having a greater share of the ball and flying into challenges. Bremen responded, staying solid at the back and looking for scoring opportunities when they could. Then, in a moment, they struck.

A deflected pass fell to Justin Njinmah, and his attempt on goal also took a deflection. Fortunately for him and for Werder, the ball ended up flying off the far post and into the back of the net. It was less a moment of magic and more a bit of fortunate, but that didn’t matter to the team at all.

The visitors locked up shop at that point, holding on at the back to secure the clean sheet and three monumental points. That put the Green-Whites seven points clear of the automatic relegation places, which should be too large of a gap to fall down with only seven games to go.

For the club, their new focus is on ensuring they aren’t at any risk of going down at all by avoiding the relegation-playoff. That race is a lot tighter, with a few teams involved. St. Pauli currently occupy the 16th position, with FC Koln two points ahead of them and then Bremen are two points ahead of them in 14th. Above them sit five teams all within three points, those being Borussia Mönchengladbach, Hamburg, Mainz, Augsburg, and Union Berlin.

Every point is at a premium, especially when you’re at home. That’s why Werder will have aims to pick up some sort of result on this occasion, even though they’re playing a talented RB Leipzig side. The teams around them in the table have pulled off some upsets, so why not them?

A win, or even a draw, could really boost Die Werderaner’s push for survival. Getting nothing from the matchup won’t hurt too bad, but it will put pressure on further contests.

Team news

Bremen’s injury report is about the same as usual. Defenders Mitchell Weiser, Julian Malitini, Maximilian Wöber, Niklas Stark, and Amos Pieper remain out, and the same is true for forwards Keke Topp and Victor Boniface. Fellow striker Jovan Milosevic might feature, but he’s far from fully fit.

Predicted lineups

Backhaus, Sugawara, Friedl, Coulibaly, Deman, Puertas, Lynen, Stage, Schmid, Njinmah, Agu

RB Leipzig

It’s been an interesting past few months for RB Leipzig.

They’ve had some good moments, some bad moments, and some weird ones too. They were held to a draw against St. Pauli and then lost at home to Mainz. Die Roten Bullen then had consecutive 2-2 draws versus Wolfsburg and Borussia Dortmund, scoring an 89th minute equalizer in the opener and then conceding a stoppage time equalizer in the following game.

Leipzig’s very recent run has been much better, though. They defeated Hamburg and Augsburg, and even though they lost to VfB Stuttgart, they then beat down Hoffenheim 5-0. It was over early, with the difference being four going into the half-time break.

That was a massive result in the race for the 4th and final Champions League berth. RasenBallsport passed their opposition to clinch that spot for the moment, but are only ahead on goal differential. Stuttgart sits three points clear of both.

For Leipzig, they’ll be desperate to rejoin Europe’s premier club competition. Their run in the tournament last season was a major embarrassment, finishing in 32nd place out of 36 teams and only picking up three measly points from eight matches. They didn’t qualify this campaign thanks to a poor domestic effort last time around.

As much as Bundesliga traditionalists dislike them and the way they rose to prominence, the Red Bulls are still one of the more talented teams in the country, and they’ve shown in the past that they can compete internationally. This young core is especially exciting, with the likes of Yan Diomande, Antonio Nusa, and Assan Ouédraogo giving supporters loads of hope for the future.

This will be a special contest for manager Ole Werner, who was Bremen’s coach until this past summer when he decided to move on from the club. While the split was a smooth one and there’s no longstanding resentment between the two sides, it’s clear Werner will want to prove that he made the right decision by winning this contest.

Team news

Leipzig will be without Brajan Gruda, who had a great showing versus Hoffenheim, plus Leopold Zingerle, Kosta Nedeljkovic, Ayodele Thomas, and Viggo Gebel. The good news is Assan Ouédraogo will be back in some capacity, set to make the matchday squad even if he doesn’t start.

Predicted lineups

Vandevoordt, Baku, Orban, Lukeba, Raum, Schlager, Seiwalk, Baumgartner, Nusa, Romulo, Diomande