Rainier Plahar

 

What: UEFA Cup Final 2009
Who: Shakhtar Donesk vs. Werder Bremen
When: 20th May 2009
Where: Sükrü Saraçoglu Stadium, Istanbul


Shakhtar in uncharted territory

Shakhtar have never been here before. Indeed this is the first time they have made it past the Round of 16 phase in the UEFA cup. Their appearance in the final is also the first for a Ukrainian team. Coach Mircea Lucescu knows all about success on this stage though, the Romanian was the coach when Galatasaray won the UEFA Super Cup in 2000. With Shakhtar’s hope of retaining the domestic championship virtually lost to Dynamo Kyiv now, everyone at the club knows a successful season depends on the Istanbul clash.
   
On the back of a solid defence and effective attack orchestrated by Fernandinho, Shakhtar know they are on the threshold of making history. They fancying their chances with Bremen live-wire Diego sitting out the final alongside Portuguese forward Hugo Almeida. However, Lucescu is likely to concentrate on his team and play to his strengths other than worry about how Bremen will line up without Diego. Victory on Wednesday would be the highlight of a rather successful five years for Shakhtar under Lucescu.

Doing it for Diego

As if the absence of Diego and Hugo Almeida isn’t bad enough, Werder Bremen fans are keeping their fingers crossed as striker Claudio Pizarro, defender Per Mertesacker and Almeida’s replacement Markus Rosenborg are doubts for Wednesday’s final. Bremen are out of the race for the Bundesliga this term, currently perched tenth in the table. The UEFA Cup is a must win for Thomas Schaaf and his team. Inspired by live-wire Diego, Bremen’s march to the final has been breathtaking, highlights being an impressive 2-2 draw with AC Milan at the San Siro after going down 2-0. The semi-final against Hamburg once again saw Bremen flirt with elimination yet grit and a dose of luck ensured Schaaf’s boys made it to Istanbul.

That victory against Hamburg proved pyrrhic however as Diego, their most influential player over the past few seasons’ picked up a needless yellow card which ruled him out of the final. It is very likely also that Diego is currently in his last season with the German outfit, and the final would have been the perfect setting for Diego to bid goodbye to Bremen. However, as fate would have it the Juventus bound playmaker will be restricted to cheering from the bench. As Thomas Schaaf indicated after the Hamburg game, Bremen will be itching to do it for Diego.

Recent form

Shakhtar:
Shakhtar 1-0 Dynamo
Shakhtar 3- 0 FC Kharkiv
Shakhtar 2-1 Dynamo
Kryvbas 0-1 Shakhtar

Werder Bremen:
Frankfurt 0-5 Werder Bremen
Werder Bremen 2-0 Hamburg
FC Cologne 1-0 Werder Bremen
Werder Bremen 3-2 Bochum

Players to Watch

Shakhtar: Brazilian Fernandinho will be Shakhtar’s most dangerous player on Wednesday. With an eye for goal and deadly from set pieces, Fernandinho has contributed four goals in eight UEFA Cup games for Shakhtar this season. His partner upfront, Jadson will also have to be watched closely by Bremen’s backline. Jadson has also notched three goals in Shakhtar’s last eight matches. With the footballing world’s eyes trained on them, the strike duo are keen to impress.

Werder Bremen: With Diego suspended and Pizarro and Rosenberg both struggling with injury, much responsibility will fall on Torsten Frings to deliver. The experienced German international will need to be at his best to win the key midfield battle and instigate attacks. Mesut Ozil is also one to look out for.

Match Prediction

It will be a contest between two very disciplined sides, both with astute coaches on the bench. It will be interesting to see how Werder Bremen line up without Diego and Almeida and with all their injury worries. I expect both teams to be a bit cautious from the start, and I see Shakthar with their disciplined backline and effective strike duo winning 2-1.

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