week 3 - match report

Schalke go top after resounding 2-0 win over Werder!

What a great evening of football at the Veltins Arena! A thrilling performance against Werder Bremen saw Schalke secure a deserved 2-0 win. The Royal Blues created a host of chances in addition to the two goals from Kevin Kuranyi (7') and Hamit Altintop (72') and now sit on top of the Bundesliga - at least for one night!

Head coach Mirko Slomka made one change to the side that started in Aachen, recalling Dario Rodriguez in place of the suspended Mladen Krstajic. The Royal Blues made it clear from the outset that they were out to do more than just match the visitors, and they did their chances no harm at all when Kevin Kuranyi gave them the lead with their very first attempt on goal. While Bremen had more possession of the ball after going behind, Schalke were playing a direct and exhilarating brand of attacking football and carved out a string of opportunities. And though they failed to score again in the first half, the match was so exciting that the fans were showing their appreciation long before the break.

"It was a great night of football", said a delighted Mirko Slomka. "I was particularly pleased that our defence didn't lose their concentration, not even in the last five or ten minutes, because we know Bremen can come back at you late on." By that time Schalke were already 2-0 up after substitute Hamit Altintop had shown his team-mates how to hold their nerve in a one-on-one with keeper Tim Wiese. "Schalke are back!" was the chant that reverberated around the Arena immediately afterwards. The Royal Blues had just one more scare when Almeida netted following a free-kick ten minutes from the end. But when the referee's assistant rightly adjudged him to be offside, the game was over as a contest.

"It was a really good performance by my players", said Slomka after the match. "Their movement was very good, which meant we always had opportunities to play dangerous balls forward. Another key factor was that Zlatan Bajramovic and Fabian Ernst won lots of balls in midfield despite being outnumbered. We saw plenty of that tonight."

Schalke: Neuer - Rafinha, Bordon, Rodriguez, Kobiashvili - Ernst, Lincoln, Bajramovic - Halil Altintop (Asamoah 64'), Kuranyi (Hamit Altintop 69'), Lovenkrands (Varela 84')

Bremen: Wiese - Fritz, Pasanen (Hunt 56'), Naldo, Wome (Schulz 56') - Baumann (Zidan 71') - Frings, Borowski - Diego - Klose, Hugo Almeida

Goals: 1-0 Kuranyi (7'), 2-0 Hamit Altintop (72')

Attendance: 61,482 (sold out)

Referee: Kircher (Rottenburg)

Yellow cards: Ernst (2), Rafinha, Kobiashvili - Borowski (2), Frings, Fritz