It was a hard-fought win. SV Werder eventually defeated SC Freiburg 2-1 at the Weser-Stadion. It looked as SVW would have to settle for a draw after a goalless first half, however Davy Klaassen broke the deadlock with a header (76’), before Theo Gebre Selassie sealed the win two minutes later – meaning that Werder ended the day in sixth, thanks to Wolfsburg losing 2-0 in Leipzig.
Line-up and formation: Florian Kohfeldt made one change to the side that drew 1-1 at Borussia Mönchengladbach last week. Johannes Eggestein picked up an injury in the final training session, resulting in Yuya Osako coming into the starting XI.
5 mins: A good start from Werder. Milos Veljkovic heads over a Milot Rashica corner.
18 mins: The next chance, again made by Rashica. This time he picks up the ball on the edge of the box, cuts inside and plays it to Yuya Osako, who can’t keep his shot down. Werder need tos how some patience.
35 mins: Jiri Pavlenka is called into action for the first time. He just manages to clear ex-Werder player Jerome Gondorf’s cross, which was destined for Florian Niederlechner. Pavlenka, however, picked up a knock during his save. At the other end, Rashica’s free-kick goes just over the bar.
38 mins: Max Kruse has his first dangerous moment of the game. Firstly, his header is well saved and then his left-footed effort.
44 mins: That was close! Freiburg’s Vincenzo Grifo just puts his shot past the past – Pavlenka would have had no chance
46 mins: Pavlenka doesn’t return for the second half. Stefanos Kapino replaces him to make his Bundesliga debut.
52 mins: Rashica puts another dangerous cross in and Klaassen volleys it home, only for Freiburg’s Schlotterbeck to clear the ball on the line.
63 mins: Claudio Pizarro replaces Yuya Osako.
70 mins: The Peruvian is already looking dangerous, narrowly missing the far post with his drive. Kapino makes a solid save from Niederlechner at the other end.
76 mins: GOOOAAALLL! Davy Klaassen! Rashica’s cross is headed towards goal and deflected into the goal by Schlotterbeck. VAR shows that Klaassen wasn’t in an offside position. Get in there!
83 mins: What a move! Kruse, Eggestein and Pizarro break, but Schwolow expertly saves Pizarro’s goal.
84 mins:GOOOAAALLL! GEBRE SELASSIE! Theo seals the win with a perfect header from a corner.
92 mins: Goal for Freiburg. Luca Waldschmidt pulls one back, but it doesn’t matter. Werder win 2-1!
Match summary: The first half saw Florian Kohfeldt’s side have the majority of the ball, however they couldn’t break down Freiburg’s defence. Werder were also somewhat lucky to not go behind on two occasions. The second half saw a lot more of the same, until Davy Klaassen deservedly gave Werder the lead. SVW’s next game is next Saturday (20/04, 15:30 CEST) at FC Bayern München.
