SV Werder Bremen started the second half of the Bundesliga season with a 2-0 defeat against FC Augsburg. In front of a home crowd of 39,350 spectators, the Green-Whites conceded twice in the first half (4', 45'+1), as Samuel Essende's brace sealed the win for the visitors.
Line-up and formation: After serving his yellow-card suspension on the last matchday, captain Marco Friedl was able to return to the starting line-up in place of Milos Veljkovic. Senne Lynen was not included in the team after picking up his fifth yellow card of the season last time out, and is replaced by Leonardo Bittencourt.
Starting line-up: Zetterer - Jung, Stark, Stage, Ducksch, Weiser, Bittencourt, Grüll, Köhn, Schmid and Friedl.
Bench: Backhaus - Pieper, Njinmah, Veljkovic, Burke, Malatini, Alvero, Kaboré and Covic.
First-half highlights:
5th minute: Augsburg take the lead. Maier plays through to Essende, who is able to keep possession after getting past Friedl. He's able to beat Zetterer with a well-placed low shot into the far corner.
13th minute: Werder go close for the first time. Grüll wins possession at the halfway line, before getting the ball to Schmid. The Austrian attempts a shot from 20 metres out, but goalkeeper Finn Dahmen is equal to it.
39th minute: Augsburg get caught on the break, as Ducksch manages to get on the end of a pass that puts him through on goal. Jakić appears to have clipped his heels and grabbed for his shoulder, as referee Brand initially reaches for the red card for what looks to be a last-man foul on Ducksch. After consulting with VAR, Brand reverses his decision and the red card is repealed. Play continues with a drop ball.
45th minute +1: A second for the visitors. Giannoulis delivers a cross into the middle of the box, where Essende is able to head in his second of the night.
Second-half highlights:
55th minute: So close! Werder do well to get the ball into the box, with Grüll's shot ultimately pinging off the post.
59th minute: Werder look to up the pressure on their opponents, allowing Augsburg more opportunities on the break. Essende is able to get off a shot that's redirected onto the crossbar by Jung.
75th minute: Schmid delivers another free kick into the centre of the box. Stage rises to meet it, but his header goes wide of the target.
86th minute: The ball falls to Burke following a corner, but the Scotsman's shot sails high and wide of the goal.
90th minute +5: Fully time. Werder fall to a 2-0 defeat against Augsburg.
Summary: Despite enjoying far more possession than their opponents, the Green-Whites were unable to match the clinical finishing that Augsburg displayed. Werder sought to come back after the break, but were unable to break down a compact FCA side.
SV Werder: Zetterer - Stark (71' Malatini), Friedl, Jung - Weiser, Stage, Köhn (71' Kaboré) - Bittencourt (64' Alvero), Schmid - Grüll (83' Burke), Ducksch (71' Njinmah)
FC Augsburg: Dahmen - Matsima, Gouweleeuw (65' Banks), Zesiger - Koudosso (86' Wolf), Maier (65' Kömür), Jakic, Giannoulis - Rexhbecaj, Claude-Maurice (77' Jensen) - Essende (65' Tietz)
Goals: 0-1 Essende (5'), 0-2 Essende (45'+1)
Referee: Benjamin Brand
Spectators: 39,350
