One of the marquee contests of the first weekend of the 2. Bundesliga season ended in a draw as Werder Bremen tied Hannover 96 1-1 at the Wohninvest Weserstadion.

A pretty ugly contest, the two goals came within a span of six minutes. An own-goal from Simon Falette gave Bremen the lead, but Marvin Ducksch was able to equalize for Hannover moments later with a cheeky chip.

In the end, the result wasn’t too bad for either, but both teams will know that they have plenty to work on going forward. 

Story of the match

The best chance of the early stages would fall to the away side. Picking up the ball near midfield, Florent Muslija dribbled into space before going for goal from distance. He made great contact on the strike, but his effort only rattled off of the crossbar before going out of play.

That was the main highlight of the first half, which didn’t have many.

The second half kicked into gear almost immediately, though, as Bremen opened the scoring minutes after the break. A corner whipped into the area redirected off of the head of Hannover defender Simon Falette and into the back of his own net, sending the home support into celebration.

It was nearly 1-1 moments later as Marvin Ducksch hit the post with a close-range shot. The rebound was a juicy one, with the ball sat in the middle of the penalty area, but no one was on hand to pounce on it.

The away side would equalize soon after, though. Ducksch was involved once again, sneaking in behind the backline before receiving a through ball. He then finished the move off in style, chipping the onrushing goalkeeper to tie things up.

The contest eventually calmed down, but Hannover did have a huge chance to take the lead with about 10 minutes to go. A shot wasn’t dealt with properly by Michael Zetterer, who spilled the ball right into the path of Linton Maina. The goalkeeper was fortunate to get away with one, as the ensuing attempt was then blocked.

That proved to be the final marquee moment of the contest, as both sides ultimately settled for a point on the night.

Takeaways

It was clear that this was the first game of the season. Both teams looked somewhat lost on the ball, and everything was just a bit sloppy. It was tough viewing for those watching at the stadium and at home, so here’s hoping that the players just need some time to get going again.

Bremen’s system did not suit the players on the roster, as they had a fullback and a striker playing out wide. The team suffered going forward as a result, and they failed to create many chances. Whether or not anything changes soon remains to be seen, but it was a worrying attacking performance to say the very least.

Hannover did do their part when it came to frustrating the opposition, to be fair. They looked solid defensively, and they also kept the ball for long stretches. They were the better side, and on another day, they could have actually won here. Nonetheless, it’s a solid showing from them.

Man of the match - Marvin Ducksch

The best of a bad bunch, Marvin Ducksch managed to be the most impactful player out on the pitch.

Getting involved on a number of occasions, the striker made himself a nuisance for the opposition defense, who didn’t really know how to handle him. As a result, he was able to help create some chances for his side, and he grabbed their only goal of the game.

It was a very well taken one, as he raced in behind the backline before settling himself and chipping the ball over the goalkeeper. If Hannover are to have any genuine hope of securing promotion this season, then they’ll likely need Ducksch to keep playing like this.

So far, so good.

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