HSV Vs Werder Bremen [3–2] – Bundesliga 2025/2026: Why Intensity Decided The Nordderby – Tactical Analysis

There are a lot of derbies in the Bundesliga, but there are two that stand out among the rest.

The first one is the Revierderby between Borussia Dortmund and Schalke 04, but with Schalke in the second division for now, the derby won’t take place this season.

The Nordderby between Werder Bremen and Hamburger SV shared the same fate for a long time.

While it was the most-played game in the Bundesliga for a long time, HSV were relegated in 2018, and therefore, the game was not played in the Bundesliga for seven years.

There were two Nordderbies in the second division during the 2021/2022 season; the game on Sunday was the first Nordderby in the Bundesliga since 2018.

For HSV and Merlin Polzin, the game was the highlight of the week.

Despite playing in the DFB-Pokal during the week, the entire club was very focused on the game.

For Werder Bremen coach Horst Steffen, the game was important, but the club took a calmer approach, treating it like every other game.

With the fans being on fire, a lot of pyrotechnics, two cities on the edge because of the game, the atmosphere was astounding.

In the end, the game held everything people were hoping for.

The first half was more tame; both teams were focused on not conceding and on defending, so there weren’t many big opportunities for either team.

The game got way faster in the second half, with four goals in 20 minutes, and, in the end, HSV emerged as the victor at Volksparkstadion, crowning themselves king of the north.

In this tactical analysis and post-match analysis, we will look at how Werder and HSV approached the game, how the game developed, and why HSV were victorious in the end.

Hamburger SV Vs Werder Bremen Formations & Lineups

Merlin Polzin has experimented a lot throughout the season, and he did the same in the Nordderby.

Daniel Heuer-Fernandes started in goal, with Nicolas Capaldo, Luka Vuskovic and Jordan Torunarigha playing as the back-three in front of him.

Bakery Jatta and Aboubaka Soumahoro started as the full-backs for Polzin.

It was Jattas first Bundesliga game this season, and he made the squad and started.

In central midfield, Albert-Sambi Lokonga and Nicolai Remberg played as the double-pivot.

In the attack, Fabio Vieira played on the right, Jean-Luc Dompé on the left, and Rayan Philippe as the lone striker, making it a 3-4-3 formation on paper.

For Horst Steffen, he changed next to nothing compared to the last couple of weeks.

In the usual 4-2-3-1 formation, Mio Backhaus got the start in goal, with Marco Friedl as the left-back, Karim Coulibaly and Amos Pieper in central defence, and Yukinari Sugawara as right-back.

Jens Stage and Senne Lynen played as the double-pivot, as always, with Romano Schmid playing as the attacking midfielder.

Marco Grüll played as the left-winger, Cameron Puertas played on the right, and, once again, Keke Topp got the start as striker over Victor Boniface.

Werder & HSV Prepared For Each Other

The first half of the game started rather slowly; both teams worked to establish ball security and focus on their work against the ball.

Polzin and Steffen both wanted their teams to maintain composure and not lose their heads early in the game, and it showed on the pitch.

Derbies are more than just tactics, and Polzin definitely managed to get his team to show a very good amount of intensity without overpacing.

Werder, on the other hand, were never able to match that over the 90 minutes and therefore struggled in the duels.

Werder have a clear identity this season, but it really struggles to execute it for multiple reasons.

The main reason, in my opinion, is the lack of individual class from their attackers.

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