Werder Bremen – Bayern München
It has been a little less than three months since the ball last rolled in the German top flight. On 27 May, the last matchday of the past Bundesliga season took place. But now football is finally returning to the stadiums. This weekend it starts again. The new season kicks off in the far north of the country. The reigning German champions Bayern Munich travel to SV Werder Bremen to kick off the season.
However, both teams also want to use the Bundesliga kick-off on Friday to make amends straight away. The guests from Munich completely fluffed the start of their first match in the previous week. The record champions lost 3-0 in the Super Cup against Leipzig at home and continued the negative trend from the previous second half of the season.
Bremen, on the other hand, suffered an embarrassment in the DFB Cup. The North Germans lost 3-2 to Viktoria Köln from the 3rd division and were eliminated in the first round of the cup for the second time in the last three years.
However, the SVW players will be counting on their fans to whip them forward in their home stadium on Friday. This is the second time the Weserstadion has been in the spotlight for the official opening match. In 2004, Werder triumphed over Schalke with a narrow 1:0. The match had to be kicked off 65 minutes late due to a floodlight failure. Who will emerge victorious in Friday’s hopefully punctually kicked-off match, you can find out in our Bremen vs Bayern tip.
Bremen – Bayern info:
- Date & Time: 18.08.2023, 20:30 Uhr
- Game venue: Wohninvest-Weserstadion, Bremen
- Competition: Bundesliga, Matchday 1
- TV coverage: DAZN, Sat. 1
Bremen Form & Balance Check
After a year in the 2. Bundesliga, Werder Bremen returned to the Bundesliga last season and were almost completely free of relegation fears. In the end, Werder Bremen secured a commanding 13th place in the league. In the coming season, the North Germans are now striving to establish themselves further up the league and take the next step forward.
However, the start of the new season in the previous week turned out to be anything but as planned. After Amos Pieper received a red card in the eleventh minute, the SVW played almost the entire match in the cup against the third division team Viktoria Köln. In the end it was not enough for Werder and they lost 2:3.
Defensive problems
Werder Bremen’s style of play is undoubtedly focused on an impressive offensive. Under the leadership of Ole Werner, a veritable offensive spectacle unfolded on the Weser. The SVW scored an impressive 51 goals last season, putting them on a par with top teams Freiburg and Union Berlin.
However, this offensive orientation revealed weaknesses in the defence time and again. Hardly a game went by without Werder conceding a goal. With 64 goals conceded, Werder had the fourth weakest defence in the entire league. In addition, SVW conceded only four goals last season. The same problems were also evident in the cup match against Viktoria Köln last Saturday.
Bremen facts & analysis
- Last year in 13th place in the Bundesliga.
- Lost 3:2 against Viktoria Köln in the previous week
- Last season 51 goals in 34 games in the league
Bayern form & balance check
The news of Julian Nagelsmann’s replacement as head coach at FC Bayern München came unexpectedly in the last second half of the season, as the club still harboured all hopes of winning titles at the time. Nevertheless, the league did not go according to plan, which is why Thomas Tuchel was hired as the new coach in March. In the DFB Cup, however, Tuchel already suffered a defeat in the quarter-finals, and Bayern were ultimately unable to keep up in the Champions League against Manchester City either.
The championship was nevertheless secured by FCB, albeit with a pinch of luck. In the new season, the record champions are finally aiming for the triple again. However, things did not go entirely smoothly at the start of the season. In the Super Cup, the Munich team was outplayed by Leipzig in their own arena and lost 0:3.
Kane should fix it
The key challenge in Bayern’s attack last season was in the centre of attack. The loss of Robert Lewandowski was not compensated for. Without a traditional centre-forward, FCB’s style of play was often predictable. Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting showed a solid performance and scored ten goals in the Bundesliga, but the 34-year-old did not reach the level of the Pole.
In the summer, therefore, a true centre-forward was at the top of the Bayern management’s list of priorities. After a long period of pondering, the FCB finally presented its desired striker last week. Harry Kane is moving from Tottenham Hotspur to Munich and has the dream of winning his first club title in his career with Bayern. He is now aiming for his first goal for his new employers against SVW.
Bayern facts & analysis
- Reigning German champions
- Best offence in the Bundesliga last year
- Lost 0:3 against Leipzig the previous week
Predicted line-up – last update on 16 August 2023
Bremer will once again operate with a three-man backline in the new season. Coach Ole Werner will probably rely on a 3-4-3 against FCB. Füllkrug and Duksch will again play together up front.
We expect Bayern to play in a 4-2-3-1 again, with new signing Kane likely to be in the starting line-up for the Bundesliga opener. Noussair Mazraoui did well after coming on as a substitute against Leipzig in the Super Cup and could play from the start.
Bremen – Bayern direct comparison & stats
Werder Bremen usually have little chance against the record champions. In the past 27 Bundesliga duels between Bayern Munich and Werder Bremen, the northern Germans have not recorded a single victory. In the previous season, Bayern Munich also clearly prevailed with 6:1 and 2:1.
- Bremen’s last victory against Bayern was on 20.09.2008.
- Bremen have picked up just one point in their last 23 Bundesliga games against Bayern.
- Both teams lost to open the season in the previous week
