Bayern ran up vainly against the rock of Werder Bremen's defence for 72 minutes, but Robert Lewandowski bagged a late and winning brace within four minutes. "Today Robert Lewandowski proved once more he's essential for the team," commented sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic after the final whistle. Carlo Ancelotti spoke of "an important victory in a very difficult match." Manuel Neuer, who made his comeback after 130 days on the sidelines, concluded: "I'm glad I was out on the pitch again and that we won the match."
Reaction to Bremen v Bayern
Hasan Salihamidzic: "We turned in a really good display. We remained patient and had many chances even if we lacked the final ball at times. But at the end of the day we've scored and won with aplomb. We were very compact and allowed no chances. Today Robert Lewandowski proved once more he's essential for the team, that he's the Bundesliga's best striker and one of the best in the world. Lewy is sensational."
Carlo Ancelotti: "I'm very happy with the result. It was an important victory in a very difficult match. We struggled to find space for an hour. You always see room for improvement as a coach, but at the end of the day it's only the three points that count."
Manuel Neuer: "I'm glad I was out on the pitch again and that we won the match. We turned in a good defensive display. We lacked vision up front in the first half, we struggled for a long time. Werder became increasingly tired in the second half, we made the most of our chances then. When the referee blew for full-time the most important thing for me was that we won the match and kept a clean sheet."
Robert Lewandowski: "Sometimes we have to be patient and wait for our chance. We all saw Werder were very defensive today. We didn't have much space, so it wasn't easy to score the first goal."
Alexander Nouri (Werder Bremen coach): "We defended well until the 70th minute. We conceded the second goal too quickly. We were very hard-running, so the final pass was often stray when switching play."
Topics of this article