This is a guest piece from Joe Rutherford.
In a match between the bottom two in the league, Werder Bremen outclassed SC Paderborn winning 5-1 away from home. Bremen had the game set at half time leading 3-0, leaving Paderborn shocked and dismantled. The difference in this match between the two teams was the quality of finishing. Paderborn in fact had more shots than Bremen but failed to keep composure in front of goal.
SC Paderborn lined up in a 4-2-2-2 system, where wingers Evans and Antwi-Adjei would predominantly play as inverted wingers, giving the freedom to both wing backs to move up the field into the wide positions. The lack of ability to keep possession of the ball played right into Bremen’s hands, where they would rely on Klaassen’s vision to kickstart a countless number of counterattacks. Most of these counterattacks were directed to the wide areas, as the wingbacks were high up the pitch trying to create overloads out wide.
On the ball Paderborn tried to move up the pitch through the two centre backs receiving the ball on the wide edges of the penalty box, however the uninspired movement from the midfield lead to unsuccessful passes and long ballls.
Sebastian Vasiliadis
Player profile:
- Nationality: Greek
- Age: 22
- Date of birth: 04/10/1997
- Current Club: SC Paderborn 07
- Career: TSG Backnang (Y), VfR Aalen, SC Paderborn
- Position: Centre Midfield
- Preferred foot: Right
Throughout this season, Vasiliadis has been the rising star with many inspirational performances. However, upon return of Bundesliga, he has failed to maintain his high-spirited performances which also showed in his performance against Bremen. The Greek international was lined up next to Gjasula, and Vasiliadis was the one playing higher out of the two.
Off the ball the central midfielder struggled to display intelligence and discipline, where he would often rush the press when it wasn’t necessary, making it very easy for Bremen’s midfield to pass around him and into the space. It seemed as if his head wasn’t in the game, struggling to keep up to pace of Klaasen’s intuitive movements, meaning one of the centre backs would rush to press, prompting the runs for Osako and Sargent to make in behind.
His positional awareness of the ball was poor, as he would run into defensive spaces which was already covered by three other teammates, leaving space in the central areas of the pitch where Bremen would productively occupy. He grew very frustrated throughout the game after not being able to assert himself off the ball, which eventually lead to a yellow card.
His performance on the ball reflected his poor performance, even though he can confidently pass of both feet, he rushed these passes often leading to interceptions or teammates struggling to take an assured first touch on the ball. When with the ball, a reason for him not being able to make good use of it was because he didn’t keep his head up. This meant he couldn’t spot passes which could have enabled the team to progress up the pitch, or lost possession after not being able to process the press from Bremen.
Sometimes his touch let him down, he showed a lot of promise when touching the ball on the ground as he was able to beat the press as a result of it, but when controlling high balls he really struggled. Out of the midfielders, Vasiliadis was the one to show confidence in dribbling up the pitch with the ball. His balance and speed enable him to take sharp turns and protect himself from getting shrugged off the ball.
Rating – B2
Although the midfielder put in a lazy performance, there were certain moments which made you think this player has a lot of potential, and with the right coach he could become a very good midfielder. Additionally, transfer speculation to bigger clubs such as Borussia Monchengladbach, there is enough evidence to show he would be more effective in a team that retains possession much better. However, he needs to avoid performances like his one against Bremen.
Jan-Luca Rumpf
Player Profile
- Nationality: German
- Age: 20
- Date of Birth: 08/07/1999
- Current Club: SC Paderborn 07
- Career: Frankfurt (Y), SV Wehen (Y), Hannover 96 II, Spfr. Siegen, SC Paderborn
- Position: Centre Back
- Secondary Position: Defensive Midfield
- Preferred Foot: Right
The 6”2 centre back was arguably the worst player on the pitch, however his performance wasn’t helped by the lack of desirable attitude the central midfielders showed to their defensive performance. Off the ball he struggled to keep track on the runs Rashica and Osako were making in behind him, and lacks the recovery pace and concentration in order to deal with pacey attacking players as shown in Bremen second and fourth goal. In the air Rumpf was very weak, he did not time his jumps well and for this reason was at fault for Bremen’s headed goal.
Rumpf really struggled to read the danger, often finding himself in the wrong place after a dangerous Bremen attack. I noticed that him and his captain Strohdiek struggled to communicate, and this meant that they would often find themselves cut open by Rashica and Sargent’s versatile running. A positive that came out from his off the ball performance was his self control not to rush out and press, delaying Bremen attacks meaning midfielder Gjasula could make it back and help defend.
On the ball Rumpf was calm, taking controlled first touches and dribbling the ball away from his box with momentum. His passing was inconsistent, at times he would make compelling passes which Paderborn were able to start an attack from, but at times they were very weak where Bremen were able to intercept and nearly scored as a result. Rumpf focused on long balls and showed a good range of passing in the second half after being visibly angered at the midfield for their slow movement.
Rating – D
Antony Evans
Player Profile
- Nationality: English
- Age: 21
- Date of Birth: 23/09/1998
- Current Club: SC Paderborn 07
- Career: Everton (Y), Blackpool, SC Paderborn
- Position: Right Wing
- Secondary Position: Attacking Midfield, Left Wing
- Preferred Foot: Right
It was Antony Evans first start in a Paderborn shirt since arriving from January. Playing as the right midfielder, Evans was versatile in his movements as he would maintain width, but also offer support more centrally. This opened space for fullback Laurent Jans to attack, however Evans lost possession on multiple occasions throughout this match and lead to dangerous Bremen counter attacks. Evans, along with Antwi-Adjei were the midfielders would offer the most support, working hard to open passing lanes for the ball playing centre backs to pass through.
On the ball Evans wasn’t very encouraging, even though he showed great desire to support teammates in attacking positions, his final balls/passes were ineffective. He isn’t very explosive which may be the reason why he didn’t like taking on players in a 1v1 situation. Evans often overcomplicated passes, often looking for the ‘miracle’ and took risks rather than the simple ball which would have made much more of a contribution to the teams build up play. However, when these passes did work off, it lead to positive attacking chances.
A major positive from his performance was his ability to take set pieces from all sorts of ranges, displaying he can put in in-swinging, and out-swinging crosses. Taking corners from both sides, he showed he can put it into dangerous areas of the box. He took four set pieces in total, with three of them nearly leading to goals.
Defensively Evans had the responsibility to track the runs of Bremen’s full backs, as they were encouraged to create overloads on the wide areas. However, he sometimes seemed confused whether to track the central players, or the fullbacks. He worked very hard to get back and form a defensive line, where he made a key defensive header.
Rating – B2
If Evans can improve his first touch and improve his decision making in his passing, he could become a decent player in this league. He had a positive mindset, and never stopped working hard even when the team was in a very difficult position.