"Great to have won a physical game like that" | OneFootball

Lynen covered more than 12 kilometres on Friday night - a team high (Photo: WERDER.DE).

Post-match reaction following home game against Mainz 05

SV Werder Bremen earned their first three points of the new year after a hard-fought 1-0 win against 1. FSV Mainz 05 on Friday evening (31st Janaury, 20:30 CET). The Green-Whites were able to withstand heavy pressure from their opponents, before being shown three red cards late on. WERDER.DE have summed up all the key quotes following the match.

Ole Werner, head coach: "We put in a very strong performance at home, especially given the circumstances. The team left it all out there on the pitch. The lads fought hard and defended well against everything they came up against – that's why the win is fully deserved and I'm very happy for the team. I set a bad example with my red card and it's something I shouldn't have let happen. Something must have built up over the last few weeks, for which I can only apologise."

Leonardo Bittencourt, match-winner: "We kept the three points at home today and nothing was going to keep us from doing that. I was just hoping that the ball went in on my goal. Scoring the winning goal in a 1-0 victory helps ease some of the pain of also getting injured. I felt something in my thigh and wasn't able to continue. We'll have to wait and see how things progress over the coming days and hopefully, it won't be anything serious."

Michael Zetterer: "Mainz played the way they have been doing all season. There were some wild moments in the game, but we were well prepared for those and did well to face them. The fact that we managed to do this means that it was a well-deserved win. We should have managed to reward ourselves for our efforts against Heidenheim already, but instead we did so tonight. I hope that it's a sign that the dam has been broken."

Senne Lynen: "The energy on the pitch was really good and was exactly what we needed at home on a Friday night. We should have scored two or three more goals. But, in the end, it's great to have won a physical game like that. It was really important to us as a team and we're now in a good position with 30 points on the board."

Peter Niemeyer, head of professional football: "We're pleased to have won, even if it came at a heavy cost for us with the red cards. We knew that today would be a tough fight, which is why we're even happier to have managed to win. The end of the match brought some hectic moments that could have been avoided, but we'll take a look at them and analyse this game as usual."