Werder Bremen vs. Borussia Dortmund: Team News, Preview, Live Stream, TV Info
Werder Bremen host Borussia Dortmund in the Weser-Stadion on Matchday 11 of the 2015/16 Bundesliga season on Saturday.
The hosts are going through a bit of a rough patch in head coach Viktor Skripnik's second season on the job, sitting in 14th place in the Bundesliga table and having won only three games so far.
Skripnik, a cult hero in Bremen because of an eight-year spell at the club as a player, took over from Robin Dutt in October of 2014 and steered the club to safety. Bremen were dead-last on Matchday 16, but an impressive second half of the season saw them finish 10th.
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In that second half of the campaign, Skripnik managed to shore things up at the back, conceding 13 fewer goals than in the first 17 games.
Defence is Bremen's strength this year, as they've conceded 15 goals in 10 matches, only three more than their opponents on Saturday. They held Bayern Munich to just one goal earlier in October.
Bremen have won their last two games, beating Mainz 05 away from home and Cologne in the DFB-Pokal, following a five-game losing streak.
Dortmund, meanwhile, are firing on all cylinders offensively at the moment, lighting up the score board like a pinball game. They've scored 17 goals in the four matches since the October international break, with 12 of those coming in the last two outings against Augsburg and Paderborn in the DFB-Pokal.
In total, Dortmund have now scored a whopping 61 goals in 19 matches under their new head coach, Thomas Tuchel.
Saturday's visitors will look to make amends for the last meeting in Bremen in December, a 2-1 loss that saw Dortmund spend the Bundesliga's winter break in a relegation spot.
Date: Saturday, October 31
Time: 2:30 p.m. GMT/10:30 a.m. ET/3:30 p.m. local time
Venue: Weser-Stadion, Bremen
TV Info: FS 2 (U.S. only)
Live Stream: Fox Soccer 2Go (U.S. only)
Form Guide
| Dortmund: | Bremen: |
| Munich: Loss (1-5) | Leverkusen: Loss (0-3) |
| Mainz: Win (2-0) | Hannover: Loss (0-1) |
| Qabala: Win (3-1) | Munich: Loss (0-1) |
| Augsburg: Win (5-1) | Mainz: Win (3-1) |
| Paderborn: Win (7-1) | Cologne: Win (1-0) |
Predicted Lineups
Bremen
Wiedwald; Gebre Selassie, Galvez, Vestergaard, Santiago Garcia; Bargfrede, Fritz, Grillitsch, Junuzovic; Bartels, Ujah
Santiago Garcia missed Bremen's cup tie against Cologne with problems to his calf and is questionable for the game. Janek Sternberg would be his likely replacement at left-back. American summer signing Aron Johannsson is out indefinitely following hip surgery (via Kicker). Much-celebrated returnee Claudio Pizarro is more mascot than player at this point and will likely only come on late in the game.
Dortmund
Burki; Ginter, Papastathopoulos, Hummels, Schmelzer; Weigl; Reus, Gundogan, Kagawa, Mkhitaryan; Aubameyang
Tuchel has the entire current first-choice XI at his disposal. Marco Reus should return to the lineup with his being left out against Paderborn a precautionary move after the Germany international had slight muscle problems. Should he not be ready to go, Gonzalo Castro would likely get another start after impressing in his last two games.
In attack, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang will take his regular spot, fully rested after spending the entire 90 minutes on the bench during the week.
Players to Watch
Zlatko Junuzovic is easily Bremen's most creative player. The Austrian, a free-kick specialist, was crucial during Bremen's impressive second half of the season last year, scoring three and assisting an impressive eight goals.
The 28-year-old hasn't quite reached those highs this season, contributing to three goals so far, among those a brace in the win over Hoffenheim. Werder need Junuzovic's creative spark and dangerous set pieces if they are to steal a result from heavy favourites Dortmund.
As for the visitors, the game marks a return to old hunting grounds for Dortmund's Greek centre-back Sokratis Papastathopoulos, who spent two years in northern Germany with Werder. After signing a contract extension during the week (via BVB.de), the man they call "Papa" in Dortmund will look to round off the week with a win over his former team-mates.
Key Battles: Centre-Backs vs. Strikers
With Dortmund's back line struggling even in wins against Qabala and Paderborn, Bremen's Anthony Ujah will like his chances to get on the scoresheet again, after scoring the winner in the DFB-Pokal against Cologne on Wednesday.
A strong and deceptively fast player, the Nigerian is tough to defend against and could prove a difficult task, especially for struggling skipper Mats Hummels. Clearly better in form than his partner, Papastathopoulos is a better match for Ujah, as the physical battle between the two could be very fun to watch.
On the other side of the pitch, Bremen will have their hands full with Aubameyang. The Gabonese doesn't need any introduction, with 20 goals in 17 appearances to his name.
Bremen did manage to hold Bayern's Robert Lewandowski goalless, which is a rare feat these days. Aubameyang's incredible pace adds another dimension, however, and Bremen's rather stationary centre-backs will have their work cut out for them if they are to keep the Bundesliga's other danger man in check.
Odds (via Odds Shark)
Bremen: 154-25
Draw: 50-119
Dortmund: 73-20
Lars Pollmann is a featured columnist writing on Borussia Dortmund. He also writes for Yellowwallpod.com. You can follow him on Twitter.
