Looking to bounce back from a heavy 4-1 defeat to Freiburg, Bremen made the best possible start to their first home game of the season, hitting the front inside four minutes of the referee’s first whistle.
The hosts’ aggressive press enabled them to win the ball high up the pitch before it was quickly worked to Chuki, who cleverly slipped in Eren Dinkci for a composed finish on his first start since returning to Bremen.
After making a sluggish start to proceedings, RB Leipzig thought they had been offered a way into the contest when the referee pointed to the spot for Karl Hein’s nervy challenge on Christopher Nkunku, but the penalty decision was soon reversed after a review showed that the goalkeeper had clearly won the ball, allowing the home fans to breathe a collective sigh of relief.
The Werder faithful nearly had a spectacular effort to celebrate when Youri Regeer attempted an audacious lob from distance in the opening stages of the second period, forcing the backpedalling Maarten Vandevoordt to palm the ball against the crossbar.
Unfortunately for the visitors, there was nothing the Belgian goalkeeper could do to prevent Fullkrug from doubling Bremen’s advantage. The imposing striker crept into the box unmarked to meet Marco Grull’s outswinging corner, producing the required power and accuracy to steer his header beyond Vandevoordt’s despairing dive.
Matters got worse for Leipzig when Marco Grüll added a third in the 80th minute, pouncing on a weak defensive header to drill a low shot in at the near post.
There was time left for Ridle Baku to head in a late consolation from a deep cross, but it would have done little to lift Martin Demichelis’ spirits as he suffered his first defeat as Leipzig boss, leaving him with work to do ahead of a UEFA Champions League clash against Como.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Olivier Deman (Werder Bremen)
