The scene in the 62nd minute of Werder's win Saturday over Hoffenheim couldn't have been any worse. Philipp Bargfrede wanted to stop a Hoffenheim counter attack and attempted to tackle Sebastian Rudy, who had the ball. But instead of hitting the ball, Bargfrede took down teammate Clemens Fritz. The Werder captain remained on the ground holding his knee and a short time later had to be subbed out. A diagnosis Sunday by team team Götz Dimanski showed that Fritz had suffered a minor tendon injury in his knee. "We hope that he can return to training in one or two weeks," said head coach Robin Dutt, who hopes that his captain can come back before the end of the season.

Bargfrede apologised directly after the match to the Bremen field general. "I just wanted to clear away the ball and all of a sudden Clemens was there. And I didn't hit the ball but hit him. I am sorry," said Bargfrede.

Kroos back

Dutt had to make do Easter Sunday without his captain but did once again have the services of Felix Kroos after he missed nearly four weeks. While Werder trained on Sunday, the training grounds will remain empty on Monday. On Tuesday, Dutt will have his team work in small groups in the Weser Stadium catacombs in the morning before training on the pitch at 3 p.m.