Tactics
Werder head coach Ole Werner is continuing to rely on the tried and trusted 3-5-2 formation that helped the club gain promotion last season from Bundesliga 2.
The first three matchdays back in the top flight have seen Werner select the same starting XI every time, including for the spectacular 3-2 win away to Borussia Dortmund. Marco Friedl, Milos Veljkovic and Amos Pieper make up the back three ahead of Jiri Pavlenka, while the attacking midfield has the experienced Leonardo Bittencourt and Mitchell Weiser pulling the strings. Waiting for service from them up front are the strike pairing of Niclas Füllkrug and Marvin Ducksch, while there is yet more fire-power on the bench. In the last-minute win away to Dortmund, all three goals came from substitutes, namely Lee Buchanan, Niklas Schmidt and Oliver Burke.
Absentees
Aurélio Buta (knee operation) and Almamy Toure (thigh injury) are still not available to Eintracht head coach Oliver Glasner.
Bremen meanwhile will likely be without Jean Manuel Mbom (torn Achilles tendon), Eren Dinkci (muscle issues) and Dikeni Salifou (groin strain).
One to watch: Marvin Ducksch
The Dortmund-born 28-year-old racked up 20 goals and 10 assists last season, playing a major part in Bremen coming straight back up to the top flight.
- Experience: he has 34 Bundesliga appearances, 138 Bundesliga 2 appearances, 54 more in the third division and 14 DFB Cup matches.
- With 30 goal involvements, Ducksch was Bremen’s most dangerous attacker in the 2021/22 season.
- He was top scorer in Bundesliga 2 in 2017/18 with 18 goals for Holstein Kiel.
Statistics
Against Bremen, Eintracht have recorded their highest number of Bundesliga wins over one opponent, with 36.
Bremen’s Werner is the club’s first coach since Thomas Schaaf in May 1999 (three wins) to go undefeated in his opening three Bundesliga matches.
Key match-up: Kevin Trapp versus Jiri Pavlenka
Kevin Trapp won no fewer than 14 trophies with top French side Paris Saint-Germain, the 32-year-old making 91 appearances for PSG. Even better was yet to come however, with the keeper winning his most prestigious club silverware to date in an Eintracht jersey, when he got to hoist the Europa League trophy aloft.
His opposite number on Sunday will be Jiri Pavlenka, who also proved his worth over the years for Werder. The Czech joined the club ahead of the 2017/18 season and has gone on to make 182 appearances. The 30-year-old stuck by the team when they were relegated to Bundesliga 2 and help them gain promotion straight back to the top tier.
