Ivan Klasnic to leave Werder Bremen

Striker Ivan Klasnic will leave Werder Bremen at the end of the season! The 28 year old informed the clubs management of his decision on Wednesday afternoon. General manager Klaus Allofs, who had recently been in contract extension negotiations with the Croatian international, deeply regrets the front mans decision:

“In the last couple of days, we once again improved our offer but he has unfortunately chosen against an extension of his contract here. He had hoped to achieve a different result, as Ivan is an exceptional striker who once again proved his class at this level even following the serious kidney illness which befell him this season. We do of course accept his decision to go in search of a new sporting challenge after seven successful years here along with us and we wish him all the very best for the future.”

source: werder.de

Bremen look to bag Bolivian

Werder Bremen are aiming to beat a host of clubs to the signature of Cruzeiro hot-shot Marcelo Moreno.

Moreno is regarded as one of the hottest properties in South America following his exploits for club and country over the last 12 months.

The 20-year-old has scored eight goals in this season’s Copa Libertadores and his form has not gone unnoticed by Europe’s top clubs.

Manchester United and Ukrainian giants Shakhtar Donetsk have been credited with an interest in Moreno.

English duo Tottenham and Manchester City are thought to have joined the chase for Moreno after scouting him in action.

However, Werder Bremen are hoping to steal a march on their English rivals by making a firm offer for Moreno as they look to lure the South American to the Weserstadion.

The Bolivian international is expected to make a decision on his future at the end of the Copa Libertadores with Cruzeiro unlikely to be able to resist any big-money offers for their prize asset.

source: Skysports.com

Fans Flock to Bundesliga, Occasionally Get Violent

The season isn’t even over, but Germany’s soccer league has already set a new attendance record. The larger, traditional clubs lead the way in attracting fans. The only problem is: supporters don’t always behave.

You don’t need to win to put bodies in seats, as Borussia Dortmund showed this season. The traditional working-class club has the highest attendance in the Bundesliga despite languishing in the bottom half of the table.

A total of 1,158,646 yellow-and-black fanatics turned up for Dortmund’s 16 home matches thus far — an average of 72,415 per game. Two other clubs, Bayern Munich and Schalke, have also already broken the one-million attendance mark.

All told, 11,636,578 fans have gone to stadiums to watch first-division matches this season. That represents an increase of almost 120,000 fans over last season, and the figure will rise when the 2007-8 campaign concludes on Saturday, May 17.

The statistics have the management of the German Football League, the DFL, very pleased indeed.

“We have the highest average attendance in the world,” DFL Chairman Christian Seifert proclaimed after the figures were released.

Value for money

Part of the reason for the league’s popularity is tradition. Clubs like Dortmund and Schalke are able to pack their massive stadiums even in lean years because they are seen as integral parts of the working-class Ruhr Valley region.

But another major factor is affordability. The average ticket price is just under 19 euros ($29) — a fraction of what fans in England, Spain and Italy pay to watch their favorite teams.

“With that, we have the most affordable product of all the top leagues,” Holger Hieronymous, the DFL’s Chairman for Game Operations, told the dpa news agency.

So while the Bundesliga’s sides, with the possible exception of Bayern, may not measure up to Real Madrid or Manchester United on the pitch, at least their supporters don’t have to break the bank to follow them live.

Out of hand

The only black mark on the 2007-8 season has been misbehavior among a small minority of fans.

On April 5, a match between Frankfurt and Nuremberg almost had to be abandoned because Nuremberg supporters threw flares onto the pitch.

More seriously, on May 3, a security official in Bielefeld suffered a fractured skull and jaw after being attacked by Bochum hooligans.

“We have to take another look at our security procedures so that the situation doesn’t become like in Italy,” Frankfurt chairman Heribert Bruchhagen told dpa. “We’re not going to capitulate before a bunch of total idiots.”

Bruchhagen’s opposite number at Bayern Munich seconded those sentiments.

“We have to remain vigilant and avoid offering a platform to hooligans,” Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said.

The German Football Association, the DFB, has banned Bochum supporters from the standing-room portion of the stadium for that team’s final home match of an otherwise successful season for German soccer.

source: Deutsche Welle

Almeida prepares for Euro 2008

The beginning of this training week could hardly have had a better start for Werder striker Hugo Almeida. The 23 year old received the nomination from Portuguese national team coach, Luiz Felipe Scolari, to take his place in the final Portugal squad for the European Championship competition, which will be hosted by Austria and Switzerland in June: “It is fantastic that I will be there and a real honour for me to represent Portugal at EURO 2008.

The big surprise absentee from the Portuguese squad was that of FC Porto’s former Champions League winner Maniche: “That’s true, it is a really big surprise,” admitted Almeida, who continued: “The national team trainer puts together the team that he believes can best represent Portugal.”

source: werder.de

Fully concentrated on the Leverkusen task

The summer holidays are beckoning, but before a deserved rest can be taken, there are still five days of absolute concentration to go for the Werder Bremen team ahead of the final game in the Bundesliga season. Trainer Thomas Schaaf explained how his side will not be budged one inch from the course that they set themselves on last weekend: “We will be maintaining the pressure, we have absolutely no reason to allow that to die down.” There will be no slipping back into old, bad habits either: “As much as we are looking forward to the game in Leverkusen, we are fully concentrated.”

The coaching staff gathered together the whole squad for the final week of training ahead of the game at the BayArena, Saturday, 17.05.2008 (kick-off 3:30pm) and began the week with a fitness check. Goalkeeper Tim Wiese (knee problem) and Daniel Jensen (muscle injury) were exempted from the session: “We’ll have to wait and see how things develop with Tim,” explained Thomas Schaaf. The inclusion of Jensen would appear to be much less likely at the moment. The Danish international had such extreme problems with his left thigh during the clash with Hannover 96, that he was forced to throw in the towel early. Just weeks ago he recovered from a muscle sinew tear in the very same place. “Right now it doesn’t look as if Daniel will be fit by the weekend,” admitted Schaaf.

source: werder.de