Already before the weekend, the Leipzig coach had Marco Rose announced that ÖFB team players Xavier Schlager for the game against Werder Bremen is “more than questionable”. In fact, the 27-year-old was missing on Sunday. The midfield engine, who only celebrated his comeback in November after a torn cruciate ligament, has again problems with his knee. “Xaver hurt himself a bit in the test match. The knee is good, but structures around it are affected,” Rose said, without going into further detail.
So the Lower Austrian missed out in front of the Red Bull football boss Jurgen Klopp his team’s 4-2 win against Bremen, in which some Austrians came into the spotlight. Nicolas Seiwald As in the last three games before Christmas, played as a central defender. This time as the right part in a three-man chain. A position that the central midfielder has never held before, at least in the ÖFB team.
There was initially no space in the offensive three-man chain of Leipzig’s 3-4-3 Christoph Baumgartnerwho only came into the game as a joker (65th), than with a brace from Xavi Simons and a dream goal from Benjamin Sesko everything was already clear. With the people of Bremen, with them Marco Friedl The ex-Rapidler organized the defense until the break and his fifth yellow card Marco Grüll enforced.
The 26-year-old, who scored a brace against Union Berlin shortly before the winter break, once again stood out positively. The goal to make it 1-1, the ÖFB colleague Romano Schmid After starting with a good overview, Grüll set up the scorer with a remarkable heel pass Mitchell Weiser before. Grüll was also accurate with a cross right into Niclas Seiwald’s soft parts. But the 23-year-old remained steadfast, played through as he almost always does and, with a mistake, initiated Bremen’s second goal to make the final score 4-2. Shortly before, Baumgartner had scored a remarkable 4-1.
Belgium
