A late header from Oliver Burke secured SV Werder their first home victory of the 2024/25 season. After a strong first half, the match against Holstein Kiel turned into a hard-fought Bundesliga contest following the break, but was ultimately settled by the Scotsman to earn the home side a 2-1 win. WERDER.DE brings you the reaction from the Green-Whites.
Head coach Ole Werner: “We saw two very different halves. We implemented our game plan really well in the first 45. We knew that we wouldn’t get a barrel of chances against such a compact opponent, yet we could have led by more at the break. We weren’t able to keep that going in the second half though. We were still in the changing room when they equalised and had to dust ourselves down. Kiel put us under pressure, but it was anyone’s game in the closing stages and we managed to nick the win. We have to work hard for every point in this division, and today was another example of that.”
Head of professional football Peter Niemeyer: “We started the game well, then it was an even battle in the second half. Fortunately, we managed to land the final blow. I’m really happy for Burke. He has embraced his role and always tries to make the best of the situation.”
Captain Marco Friedl: “It was a tough day for us, as we didn’t exactly make our own lives easier. We were sitting pretty after the first half and had complete control of the game. We then started making a lot of mistakes after the break and suddenly the game was wide open. Nevertheless, I have to praise the character the team showed today, which ultimately is what finally got us our first home win today.”
Winning goalscorer Oliver Burke: “It was a great cross and all my hard work has paid off with that goal. We had a good first half, but then it turned into a difficult game. We're delighted to have got the win. Picking up three points here in front of our fans for the first time is a great feeling and I hope that we can put a run together now.”
????️ Oliver Burke on #svwksv:
— SV Werder Bremen EN (@werderbremen_en) November 9, 2024
"It was a great cross and all my hard work has paid off with that goal. We had a good first half, but then it turned into a difficult game. We're delighted to have got the win."#werderpic.twitter.com/WjxyV7Xd0D
Niklas Stark: “We could have done better in one or two periods of the game. We tried to get forward and make things happen but just missed that intensity in the second half. The task now is to try and replicate that first-half intensity moving forward. It was so important to get that first win at home and we are extremely happy for Oliver Burke. He has helped out the team there so we are really pleased to have him.”
Senne Lynen: “The first half was very good, but we perhaps just needed to be a bit more decisive to make it an easier game for ourselves. In the second half, the opponents were simply better at being first to the ball but we kept pushing despite that. This home victory is very, very important and we’re all so delighted for Burkey, who has come a long way and has always stuck at it.”
