week 2 - match preview

Rutten expects interesting clash in Bremen

The Royal Blues travel to Bremen on Saturday buoyed by three wins in succession. But the good performances of recent weeks are not the only reason why Fred Rutten is optimistic going into the game.

"Bremen are a good side full of top-quality players", the Dutchman said. "But we're in good form so it's going to be an interesting encounter." The Schalke boss has been pleased by his team's defensive displays, in particular, in the three competitive matches played thus far. "It's always good when you're well organised at the back. It gives the opposition the feeling that you're difficult to beat."

Rutten and his coaching staff have prepared meticulously for the trip to the north of Germany. "Obviously I watched Bremen's last game and we also have some very good people who give me accurate analyses."

That Werder are without playmaker Diego, who is at the Olympic football tournament in Beijing, is not necessarily a disadvantage for Thomas Schaaf's men according to Rutten. "They're a close-knit team and have enough good players who can slip into his role", he said.

The Dutchman also had words of praise for Claudio Pizarro, who returns to the Bundesliga after playing only a part-time role at Chelsea in the English Premier League. "He's a very good player who will add even more momentum to Bremen's attacking game. We'll need to suppress that as quickly as possible."

Although Saturday's clash at the Weser Stadium sees the side that finished second last season take on the team who were third, Rutten does not wish to overstate the significance of the game. "The outcome of the season doesn't depend on this game. Nevertheless we'll obviously be trying to get a positive result."

When asked if it was an advantage to travel to Bremen so early in the campaign, the Schalke boss declined to commit himself, saying: "It's all hypothetical. For the top sides it's obviously an advantage when a game like this comes later in the season, but it's the same for both teams, after all."

And Schalke's 5-1 defeat last season is of little interest to the Dutchman. "We won there 2-0 the season before that. It's much more important to concern ourselves with what we have to do to make sure we win this time."