On Sunday afternoon (from 3:30 p.m.) one of the oldest rivalries in German Bundesliga football returns to the big stage: the Northern Derby is back! After more than seven and a half years, Werder Bremen travels to Hamburger SV’s sold-out Volksparkstadion.
More than 50,000 fans will transform the stadium into a seething cauldron. For Werder Bremen, it’s not just about prestige, but also about continuing a successful streak: Green-White remained unbeaten in the Bundesliga in four northern derbies in a row.
After the 1-1 draw against 1. FC Köln, the team was emotionally excited for the derby by the fans in front of the Ostkurve last weekend.
The anticipation is increasing more and more. This is exactly what Werder’s professional boss Clemens Fritz sees as a danger. The 44-year-old, himself a derby-tester from his eleven years as a professional at Werder Bremen, urges caution.
“You can feel the anticipation, and that’s nice. It’s going to be a special and certainly heated and intense game. But despite all the aggressiveness, it’s important that it’s fair. You have to stay calm in this heated situation and not get too excited,” Fritz is quoted as saying in “Bild”.
The former SVW captain knows what awaits the team in Hamburg: an emotionally charged duel in which the protagonists need to keep a cool head.
HSV still challenged in the cup
“I can only appeal for things to be fair on and around the pitch. Anything else wouldn’t be good for the game,” said the 44-year-old.
In terms of personnel, however, Werder entered the training week in a weak position: a small wave of illness slowed down preparations. Amos Pieper, Samuel Mbangula and Olivier Deman were missing from the start of training. At least there is some positive news: Maximilian Wöber partially trained again for the first time since his serious injury in August. Mitchell Weiser and Felix Agu, on the other hand, remain long-term failures.
While Werder has a full week to prepare for the derby clash, HSV still has to play in the cup. On Wednesday, Hamburg will face Kiel in the round of 16 – an additional chance to gain confidence after Merlin Polzin’s team recently defeated Stuttgart 2-1 in the last minute.