Sven Ulreich spoke of a “hard day’s work”, Niklas Süle of a “tough, tough win” and Robert Lewandowski thought “it wasn’t a perfect game from our side”. Nevertheless, FC Bayern took away a hard-earned 4-2 win against Werder Bremen in the first home game of the new year as the record champions extended their lead at the top of the table to 16 points.
“There are games we’ll find tough. What’s important is we win and extend our lead,” explained Niklas Süle after the final whistle in the sold-out Allianz Arena. The 16th-placed visitors from Bremen put up a good fight against the hosts, who found the game difficult at times after the “extremely long week”, as described by Thomas Müller, between the first game back in Leverkusen and the home game against Werder.
“Bremen played well, we didn’t play as we'd intended early on”, analysed Müller. “We weren’t so precise in our play, we were too slow and sedate coming out from defence”, criticised coach Jupp Heynckes. He spoke conciliatory words to the opponents, who “played a very good game, not like a team fighting for relegation.”
Double brace
After Bremen’s surprise lead through Jerome Gondorf and a Süle own goal levelling the score again at 2-2, the visitors were hopeful of picking up a point for a short while, but in the end Bayern’s individual quality decided the match. Thomas Müller and Robert Lewandowski both scored braces to ensure an eighth win in a row for the men from Munich.
“It makes us stand out when we win games like this”, commented a delighted Heynckes after the hard-fought victory. “The team are always there when they need to be. But we have things to work on, just like after every game. We aren’t yet in the position we want to be”, thought Müller. “We know there are still areas we can improve. We’ve got the team spirit and the quality, now it’s just about fine-tuning.”
Lewandowski, who extended his lead as the league's top scorer with his 16th and 17th goals of the season, spoke of Bayern being in a “good position” and is looking forward to upcoming challenges with confidence. “It’s important to keep our good form going – no matter how big the lead is. Then we’ll find it easier in the Champions League”.
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