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Werder Bremen will begin their long journey back to the top flight when they host Hannover 96 in their opening game of the 2. Bundesliga on Saturday.
After being relegated to the second division on the final matchday of last season, Werder Bremen will hope for an instant return. Hannover will also want the same thing after missing out last season.
Both teams had a good pre-season period heading into the opening game and will look to hit the ground running.
Werder Bremen will be boosted by the fact that 14,000 fans will be allowed into the Weserstadion for their season opener.
Werder Bremen vs Hannover 96 Head-to-head
Werder Bremen had a positive pre-season, winning three of the five games they played. Of course, form doesn’t really count, but considering how poorly they finished last season, the wins will do their confidence a lot of good.
Hannover’s head-to-head record against Werder Bremen isn’t great, and they will look to improve that come Saturday.
The two sides have faced off on 90 occasions, and Hannover have won just 23 times. Werder Bremen have won 47 games, while 20 games have ended as draws.
Werder Bremen form guide: W-W-D-W-L
Hannover 96 form guide: W-D-L-D-L
Werder Bremen vs Hannover 96 Team News
Werder Bremen
Luca Plogmann is with the German under-23 team at the Tokyo Olympics. Milos Veljkovic is still isolating after testing positive for COVID-19, and will not be available either.
Leonardo Bittencourt, Abdenego Nankishi and Thore Jacobsen are expected to miss out. Jiri Pavlenka, Nicolai Rapp and Dominik Becker are training individually and are not expected to make it in time for the game.
Injured: Leonardo Bittencourt, Abdenego Nankishi, and Thore Jacobsen
Unavailable: Luca Plogmann, Milos Veljkovic, Jiri Pavlenka, Nicolai Rapp, Dominik Becker.
Hannover 96
New signing Jannik Dehm is not expected to feature as he hasn’t quite had enough training sessions with his new teammates. Franck Evina has a muscle injury and will not be available.
Injured: Franck Evina
Unavailable: Jannik Dehm
Werder Bremen vs Hannover 96 Predicted Lineups
Werder Bremen Probable XI (4-3-3): Michael Zetterer, Felix Agu, Omer Toprak, Lars Mai, Jean Manuel Mbom, Kevin Mohwald, Maximilian Eggestein, Niklas Schmidt, Romano Schmid, Josh Sargent, Johannes Eggestein
Hannover 96 Probable XI (4-3-3): Ron-Robert Zieler, Niklas Hult, Simon Falette, Marcel Franke, Sei Muroya, Sebastian Ernst, Florent Muslija, Sebastian Kerk, Linton Maina, Sebastian Stolze, Marvin Ducksch
Werder Bremen vs Hannover 96 Prediction
It’s tough to predict who will emerge victorious on the opening day, but Werder Bremen have more quality on paper. With the fans cheering them on, the home side should start on a winning note.
Prediction: Werder Bremen 2-0 Hannover 96
