Bremen’s balance against FC Bayern Munich is miserable. The experience of the new trainer Horst Steffen is also not much better. What else does hope?
The personal record of Werder coach Horst Steffen against FC Bayern Munich is pitiful. Of 13 games as a professional in Uerdingen, Mönchengladbach and Duisburg, he did not win a single one. He even experienced his most important Bayern moment as a grandstandast: because the DFB Cup final in 1998 (1: 2 with the MSV Duisburg) missed because of a serious Achilla tendon injury.
On Friday evening at 8:30 p.m. Steffen will now meet Bayern as a Bundesliga coach. And his new club Werder Bremen has also won only one thing from the past 31 Bundesliga games against the German champion. So a hopeless case in the Allianz-Arena? Nothing to get for Steffen, Werder and Co.?
Bayern plow through the game plan
Not necessarily, said the 56-year-old. His team wanted to go to Munich “with a brave attitude”. “We want to use every opportunities to drive our attacks. It will be a lot to be defended. A lot will be running. Because this is Bavaria Munich. We have a top European force against us. But I am glad that we can measure ourselves with them.”
With all anticipation: the old north-south rivals could hardly have started this season. Four games, four wins, already 18 goals: Bayern are plowing through their schedule during these weeks. Even the club world champion FC Chelsea had no chance in the Champions League in Munich.
Werders Worries about injury remain
Werder, on the other hand, still does not quite work in this upheaval season. The scatter in the results and services is great. One reason for this is: the squad finally has a face after the end of the extremely stressful transfer period. Any access, departure and whereabouts have now been clarified. This newly formed team has never stood together on the pitch.
Someone is constantly missing, returns – or injures themselves. In Munich, the new stammer goalkeeper Mio Backhaus is now out after a collision in training. Another example of Werder’s search for personnel Constance is the Austrian Marco Friedl.
Captain Friedl ready for use again
From the former youth player of FC Bayern to the captain in Bremen, his season balance has so far looked like this: against Frankfurt (1: 4), Mönchengladbach (4: 0) and Freiburg (0: 3), Friedl was there, in the meantime he was missing in the 3: 3 against Leverkusen. Before the Bayern game, knee problems and the anxious question occurred again: Will he be fit again until Friday?
The answer is: yes. “Marco signaled that it was possible and that he is pain -free again,” said Steffen after training on Thursday. But the Friedl case also shows why nothing has been found or has been able to find out at Werder this season. The new star striker Victor Boniface? Is still too far away from the starting eleven. The ten million euro shopping Samuel Mbangula? Most recently was missing in training.
Werder still in the finding phase
“We got new boys relatively late, so it was clear: that is still a phase of finding,” said Steffen. “But it gets better from week to week.”
Before the departure to Munich, the new Werder coach also remembered a positive Bayern experience: “We were outnumbered with Borussia Mönchengladbach a 2-2 in Munich at the last minute. That was nice,” said Steffen. But: “The boys are not interested in old stories.”
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Sportblitz, September 25, 2025, 6:06 p.m.
