week 20 - match report

2-0 in Bremen! Superb Schalke show championship credentials

What an impassioned Schalke performance at the Weser Stadium! Two goals from Peter Lovenkrands gave the Royal Blues a deserved 2-0 victory over Werder Bremen to knock the home side off the top of the table. "We did everything we set out to do before the game", said head coach Mirko Slomka.

The Schalke boss made two changes to the side that beat Aachen in midweek, Tim Hoogland coming at right-back for the suspended Rafinha and Zlatan Bajramovic replacing the injured Levan Kobiashvili in midfield. In this formation the Royal Blues demonstrated from the very first second how they intended to win the game. "We set out to be aggressive, double up on the man on the ball, stay calm in possession and go forward with determination, and that's what we did for 90 minutes", was Slomka's matter-of-fact analysis after the final whistle, a view striker Kevin Kuranyi expressed in more euphoric terms: "That proved our credentials. We destroyed Bremen's game with a battling performance."

While Werder playmaker Diego was still wondering why he was getting no time to provide the Bremen strikers with the service to which they have become accustomed, Lincoln was doing so to great effect at the other end, fashioning the first chance of the game for Peter Lovenkrands, who converted the Brazilian's accurate cross with an acrobatic scissor-kick to give Schalke the lead in the 20th minute. The same combination could have produced a second minutes later had the Dane not been wrongly pulled up for offside. But things evened themselves out shortly afterwards when Germany striker Miroslav Klose suffered the same fate.

Even before half-time it was clear to everyone at the Weser Stadium that this determined Schalke team would be very difficult to stop. The Royal Blues permitted very few shots on goal, and when called upon keeper Manuel Neuer confirmed his excellent form of recent weeks and months. An explanation for Schalke's self-assured performance was provided by Fabian Ernst: "We knew how to beat Bremen from the reverse fixture and went into the game having prepared accordingly."

It was much the same pattern after the break. No matter how hard Werder tried, they couldn't find a way through the Schalke rearguard. "We kept things very tight at the back", said Neuer in praise of his defence. Particularly impressive was the way the midfield players ran their socks off right until the end. "Schalke were very aggressive and kept up an incredible tempo. We were unable to trouble their defence, put them under serious pressure, create any chances or get Schalke on the run. What we did do was allow them to put some tackles in - and they did that very well", conceded Bremen coach Thomas Schaaf.

Schalke might have found themselves easing to victory much earlier if Naldo's foul on Kuranyi in the Bremen box had been punished with the award of a penalty (59'). As it was, the Schalke centre-forward made the goal for Lovenkrands, the Dane's second, which settled the game on 73. That was the end of the excitement for the evening, even though Bremen could have been given a penalty following a challenge by Bordon on Klose (83'). But once again the officials waved play on. And so it was left for the travelling Schalke fans to start the celebrations. Mirko Slomka even singled one player out, saying: "Tim Hoogland comes in just like that after weeks on the sidelines and plays so well - that shows what a good team we have. I'd like to praise the whole squad."

Bremen: Reinke - Fritz, Mertesacker, Naldo, Womé - Borowski (Vranjes 64') - Jensen, Schulz (Hunt 64') - Diego - Klose, Almeida (Rosenberg 64')
Schalke: Neuer - Hoogland, Bordon, Krstajic, Rodriguez - Ernst, Bajramovic (Hamit Altintop 77') - Lincoln (Boenisch 86') - Varela (Halil Altintop 70'), Kuranyi, Lovenkrands
Goals: 0-1 Lovenkrands (20'), 0-2 Lovenkrands (73')
Attendance: 42,100 (sold out)
Referee: Fandel (Kyllburg)
Yellow cards: Jensen, Hunt, Fritz, Vranjes, Diego - Bajramovic, Varela, Neuer, Lincoln, Krstajic