Frank Baumann on an emotional afternoon

Frank Baumann has been involved with SV Werder for half of his life. The centre-back moved from Nürnberg to Werder before the turn of the century in 1999. He led SVW onto the pitch as captain just a year later and won the double in 2004. Title-winning head coach Thomas Schaaf’s side’s achievements were celebrated at the stadium in front of the fans to mark 20 years since the 2003/2004 season, whilst they were honoured with a special tifo. “Great appreciation was shown to the double-winning team, which is something I can only say thank you for as one of the members of that side,” said Baumann. “It was a day which I’ll remember for a long time.”

That was certainly also the case when the Ostkurve sang his name shortly afterwards as part of his own farewell.  Baumann will be departing the club following a quarter of a century as a player or official. “Giving a sporting director such a farewell isn’t a given,” explained Baumann. “It really touched me, even though the game on Saturday was the priority for me in all honesty.” The Green-Whites put in an excellent performance in that regard and secured a 4-1 win against VfL Bochum.

The only slight disappointment on a successful afternoon was that Werder were only two goals off eighth place and potential qualification for Europe.

Thank you for a wonderful 25 years, Frank ????????#werderpic.twitter.com/9rJ3TnUe2r

— SV Werder Bremen EN (@werderbremen_en) May 18, 2024