Werder Bremen Captain Torsten Frings Will Certainly Have A Job To Do In Italy Against Sampdoria.

Last week’s Champions League qualifying encounter saw Werder Bremen smash their Italian opponents by a score of 3-1, thanks to goals from Fritz, Frings and Pizarro, and a lone Pazzini strike at the death to secure an away goal for Sampdoria. While Werder Bremen hold the advantage heading into the second-leg, they will need to be cautious as they fight for a Champions League berth in Italy. Sampdoria are not by any means an easy side to beat at their home ground, and they certainly will not be as unorganized at the back as they were a week earlier in Germany.

Last weekend, Werder Bremen kicked off their Bundesliga season away to Hoffenheim, and they were rather shockingly dispatched. Werder Bremen took an early lead after a Torsten Frings penalty, and things seemed to be going rather well for the Champions League hopefuls. Hoffenheim pressed Werder Bremen – who surely must have had one eye on their upcoming midweek fixture against Sampdoria – and stuck four goals past Thomas Schaff’s side before half-time had come. The defeat serves to prove one thing, if nothing else – Werder Bremen must proceed with caution against a Sampdoria side that have both a great wealth of attacking players, and a vital away goal.

Sampdoria have not yet begun their domestic campaign, and one could make the point that they’re a side who are lacking match sharpness. One could also see it the other way around. Sampdoria will have been training for two weeks now for just these two matches. Antonio Cassano and Giampaolo Pazzini will look to continue their form in front of goal, and in an instant they could change the entire look of this fixture. It will be important for Werder Bremen to score an early goal. If they can do that, they can almost guarantee Champions League football this season. If Sampdoria snatch an early lead, Werder Bremen will need to adopt a counter-attacking tactic and look to catch the Italians on the break.

This fixture has all the makings of becoming a classic. Let’s hope that’s what we get tomorrow night.