“In terms of attitude, Joe was a role model for me. He always led from the front and gave 100 percent. He’s an extremely important figure for VfL Osnabrück,” explained Nouri about Joe Enochs – the Lily Whites’ current head coach. “I’m looking forward to the reunion in our old stomping ground.” The American Enochs was one of Nouri’s teammates during his time in Osnabrück and this season, the Nouri has already got one over on his old friend, as he led the Werder U23s to a 4-2 win against Osnabrück this August. However, the Lily Whites are enjoying a good season so far, with 24 points from 14 games, they currently find themselves in a promotion spot in second place. In their squad, they also have two ex-Werder players in Marc Heider and crowd favourite, Addy-Waku Menga.
The two sides have faced each other in friendlies on a few occasions. The last one was in the summer of 2013, as SVW were beaten 1-0. Half a year earlier, the teams met in wintery conditions as preparation for the second half of the Bundesliga season. This time, SVW came out on top, winning 2-1 with goals from Kevin De Bruyne and Marko Arnautovic. The last competitive encounter between the two teams was a long time ago – 35 years to be exact. On that occasion, Werder won the away tie 4-1 in a 2. Liga Nord match.