Much improved from their midweek game in the cup, Hertha came out 4-1 winners against Werder Bremen who struggled at home last year and stayed in the top division through the relegation playoffs. They set up in a fairly fluid formation best described as a 4312 with a midfield diamond, using their new players brought in since they had a lot of investment into the club, such as Tousart, Cordoba, Schwolow and Zeefuik making their debuts. They had a dominant first half where they controlled the game and went 2-0 up just before the break, they allowed Bremen back into it a bit in the second half but never looked uncomfortable.
Ratings
- A1 – Very good, could play higher
- A2 – Strong potential to play higher
- B1 – Good, strong player at level
- B2 – Potential to be strong player at level
- C – Average for the level, rewatch
- D – Below average in this match
Matheus Cunha
Player Profile:
- Nationality: Brazilian
- Age: 21
- Date of birth: 27/05/1999
- Current club: Hertha Berlin
- Career: Coritiba (Y), FC Sion, RB Leipzig, Hertha Berlin
- Position: Striker
- Secondary position: Right Wing
- Preferred foot: Right
Playing as the 10, Cunha had another strong game with a well-rounded performance. He covered a lot of ground and tracked back well to do a lot of defending, winning the ball back well and showing good work rate and commitment. His first half was good but grew into the game and was a standout in the second half.
He received the ball well and found good pockets of space between the lines and was well positioned to receive the ball from the midfield or defence. He was elegant on the ball with his head up constantly and good changes of speed. He carried the ball a lot and was able to beat his man with bursts of speed and close control. He spread the ball well and played some good forward passes and throughballs.
He didn’t get into the wide areas of the box much, which is where he is often at his most dangerous and wasn’t able to make runs behind due to his deeper position. In the box though he is very calm and able to sell defenders and get to the byline with ease. He also scored their 3rd goal with a good finish from the left side of goal.
Rating – A1
Overall, an excellent performance where I’m struggling to criticise him other than he had a slightly quieter first half. Going to have a very big season in my opinion. He maybe could have created more and I prefer him when he can attack wide areas, although he got more of the ball he could be more effective when able to attack from the left, but also could have roamed more.
Jordan Torunarigha
Player Profile:
- Nationality: German
- Age: 23
- Date of birth: 07/08/97
- Current club: Hertha Berlin
- Career: Chemnitzer FC (Y), Hertha Berlin
- Position: Centre Back
- Secondary position: Left Back
- Preferred foot: Left
Back from suspension, Torunarigha played as the left centre back. He was good on the ball, with good passing to his left back and into midfield with smooth, driven passes. He also showed good range with good diagonals to the right wing. He did play some lofted pass to his left back which was really poor though and went over his head. He was in a deep position in buildup and didn’t face much pressure and was able to calmly cycle the play. He carried into space a few times, including one time late on to begin the counter attack before playing through Cordoba for a big chance.
He stands 6’3 with a good build and showed good athleticism. He’s a powerful runner with good pace and defended space in a high line well, able to recover well and dealt with long balls calmly. He was well positioned in the box and has a good leap, cutting out a lot of balls into the box and covered across well to make a strong, well-timed tackle to stop a cutback.
Also he dealt with a 1v2 very well, with good footwork and good acceleration to catchup with the runner and block his cutback. He positioning was good overall and was strong in the air, not tending to press out of the line much. Overall, a strong game where he was solid defensively and good on the ball.
Rating – A2
Dodi Lukebakio
Player Profile:
- Nationality: Belgian
- Age: 22
- Date of birth: 24/09/97
- Current club: Hertha Berlin
- Career: Anderlecht, Toulouse (L), Charleroi (L), Watford, Fortuna Dusseldorf (L), Hertha Berlin
- Position: Right Wing
- Secondary position: Striker
- Preferred foot: Left
Lukebakio played as the second striker but drifted to the right side often before being brought off in the 81st minute. He tracked back well and times and showed good work rate but overall had a bit of a quiet game, but still got a goal.
At 6’2 Lukebakio is a technical player with good feet, he turns well and showed good control and ball retention under pressure. He’s patient and calm on the ball, getting his head up and able to drive at the defence with controlled small touches and is a strong runner with very good pace over medium distances and good agility. He wasn’t able to make the runs behind that he normally excels at, but when he did he scored his goal with an excellent finish with a lot of power on it.
Overall, a strong game where he scored and was dangerous but could have been more involved at times. He didn’t get into crossing positions and had a very different game to his one in the cup.
Rating – A2
Maximilian Mittelstädt
Player Profile:
- Nationality: German
- Age: 23
- Date of birth: 18/03/97
- Current club: Hertha Berlin
- Career: Hertha Berlin
- Position: Left Back
- Secondary position: Left Wing
- Preferred foot: Left
Back at left back, Mittelstadt didn’t have his best game. He was good in buildup, doing well under pressure. He did well to pass up the line and then overlap. He was also able to cut inside and dribble in before switching play to the right back. Some of his inside passing could have been better though. He got into a few good crossing positions and made late runs to join the attack, hitting them first time and the quality of cross was poor while on the run instead of being able to set himself.
Defensively he did well, he was mostly good in 1v1s, patient when needed but when he committed he came away with the ball and showed good strength and aggression. He was beaten one time when he hadn’t set himself properly and body position wasn’t correct. He was also beaten at the back post for their goal. Overall, not his best performance but no big errors.
Rating – B2
Lucas Tousart
Player Profile:
- Nationality: French
- Age: 23
- Date of birth: 29/04/97
- Current club: Hertha Berlin
- Career: Valenciennes, Lyon, Hertha Berlin
- Position: Defensive Midfield
- Preferred foot: Right
On his Bundesliga debut, Tousart had an okay game but wasn’t a standout. He was able to push forward more than in the previous game where he stayed back as a deep outlet and just cycled play. He pushed up the left half space, linking with the left back a few times. He played some decent forward passes after his team won possession but in the opposition half was quite conservative with his passing and lowered the tempo of the attack, not really creating anything and didn’t travel with the ball either.
The 6’1 midfielder is a good physical presence who was strong in the challenge and recovered the ball well as times but wasn’t very defensively orientated and didn’t show that much energy or commitment but did put out decent defensive numbers but I felt I just didn’t notice him much out of possession.
Rating – C
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