Bremen eyeing another Italian scalp

Having already eliminated tournament favourites AC Milan, Werder Bremen will look to end Serie A's interest in UEFA club competition this season when they play host to Udinese Calcio in the first leg of their UEFA Cup quarter-final.

1) Match background

Previous meetings:
Udinese Calcio 1-1 3-4 Werder Bremen
2005/06 UEFA Champions League group stage

• Thomas Schaaf's Bremen had the better of the two sides' only previous European meetings. On Matchday 3 of Group C, Serse Cosmi's side needed a late Antonio Di Natale strike to salvage a draw at the Stadio Friuli after Felipe had put through his own net in the 64th minute.

• The return match proved to be a thriller. Goals from Miroslav Klose, Frank Baumann and Johan Micoud helped Bremen race into a 3-0 lead, but two Di Natale goals and a Christian Schulz own goal levelled matters in the space of six second-half minutes. Frenchman Micoud finally clinched all three points with a 67th-minute volley, with Giampiero Pinzi dismissed late on for Udinese.

Bremen's record against Italian clubs: P24 W8 D10 L6
Bremen's record at home against Italian clubs: P12 W6 D6 L0
Udinese's record against German clubs: P8 W2 D2 L4
Udinese's record away against German clubs: P4 W2 D0 L2

• Having drawn 1-1 away and won 2-1 at home against FC Internazionale Milano in this season's UEFA Champions League group stage, Bremen beat Milan on away goals in the UEFA Cup Round of 32, drawing 1-1 at the Weserstadion and 2-2 at San Siro.

• Bremen have met Italian opposition in seven previous knockout ties in UEFA club competition, winning four – including a 1987/88 UEFA Cup quarter-final against Hellas-Verona FC – and losing three.

• Bremen have never lost a competitive home game against an Italian team.

• Oddly, Udinese's only two victories against German clubs to date came away from home, at Bayer 04 Leverkusen in the 1999/00 UEFA Cup third round and at BV Borussia Dortmund in this season's UEFA Cup first round.

• Udinese knocked Bremen's Bundesliga rivals Dortmund out of this season's UEFA Cup 4-3 on penalties at the Stadio Friuli after the two teams had traded 2-0 home defeats. That was their second victory in three two-legged European ties against German opposition.

• The fans packing the Weserstadion will surely keep a nervous eye out for Udinese forward Di Natale, who has hit three goals in two previous games against Bremen.

• Schaaf played for Bremen in four matches against Serie A clubs, winning one and drawing three, including both home fixtures.

• His overall record against Italian opposition as Bremen coach reads P14 W5 D5 L4. At home, his record reads P7 W5 D2 L0.

• Still in his first season in European competition as a coach or a player, Udinese boss Pasquale Marino's only experience of German opposition was the first-round victory against Dortmund.

• Bremen's Duško Tošić and Udinese's Aleksandar Luković are international team-mates with Serbia.

• Bundesliga runners-up last season, Bremen earned their Round of 16 place by finishing third in UEFA Champions League Group B. They then overcame Milan on away goals in the Round of 32, drawing 1-1 at home and 2-2 at San Siro. They won 1-0 at home and drew 2-2 away against AS Saint-Etienne to make it to the quarter-finals.

• Udinese finished seventh in Serie A last season to seal a place in the UEFA Cup first round. They topped UEFA Cup Group D and then beat KKS Lech Poznań in the Round of 32, drawing 2-2 in Poland and winning 2-1 at home. They then knocked out holders FC Zenit St. Petersburg, winning 2-0 at home and losing 1-0 in Russia.

• The second leg will be held at the Stadio Friuli on 16 April. The winners of this tie will meet Hamburger SV or Manchester City FC in the semi-finals on 30 April and 7 May, playing the first leg at home. The winners of that semi-final will be the nominal away side in the final at the Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium in Istanbul on 20 May.

2) Form book

Bremen: Schaaf's men have lost only two of their last ten European home games – both of them against Greek sides in the UEFA Champions League group stage. This is their fifth UEFA Cup quarter-final. They have won three of their previous four ties at this stage of the competition.

Last five European games: WDDWD
Last five European home games: DLWDW
Top scorer (Europe): Claudio Pizarro (5, including 2 in the UEFA Champions League group stage)

Last five league games: DDWLW
Last five home league games Bremen: LDDWW
Domestic top scorer: Claudio Pizarro (15)

Udinese: Udinese are playing in their first major European quarter-final. They have not won on their last three UEFA Cup away days. They are the only side in the last eight never to have won a major domestic trophy.

Last five European games: LDWWL
Last five European away games: WWLDL
Top scorer (Europe): Fabio Quagliarella (5)

Last five league games: WDDLL
Last five away league games: DDLDL
Top scorer (Serie A): Antonio Di Natale (12)

Disciplinary information:
Bremen: Baumann is back after serving a suspension. Clemens Fritz, Daniel Jensen, Mesut Özil, Diego and Markus Rosenberg are within a booking of a one-match ban.

Udinese: Maurizio Domizzi is available again after a one-match ban. Emanuele Belardi, Andrea Coda, Gaetano D'Agostino, Simone Pepe and Quagliarella will miss the second leg if they are cautioned in Bremen.

3) Who are...

Bremen

Honours
• UEFA Cup Winners' Cup: 1991/92
• UEFA Intertoto Cup: 1998
• Domestic honours: 4 German titles, 5 German Cups.

Trivia
• Bremen have spent only one season outside the Bundesliga since it began in 1963/64. That solitary second-tier campaign came in 1980/81, with the team winning promotion straight back into the top flight.

• The club was founded in February 1899 as FV Werder, with 'werder' being an obscure German word for a river island, like the Peterswerder upon which the Weserstadion stands. They became Werder Bremen in January 1920 and two years later were the first German team to hire a professional coach.

• Werder are famous for their European miracles on home soil, with at least four games being remembered for a 'Wunder von der Weser':-
- in the 1987/88 UEFA Cup they won 6-2 at home against FC Spartak Moskva after extra time, having lost the first leg 4-1.
- in the 1988/89 European Champion Clubs' Cup they lost 3-0 at BFC Dynamo Berlin but prevailed with a 5-0 home success.
- In the 1993/94 campaign they came from 3-0 down in a UEFA Champions League group match against RSC Anderlecht to win 5-3.
- In the 1999/2000 UEFA Cup third round they lost 3-0 at Olympique Lyonnais, but won 4-0 in the home leg.

Udinese

Honours
• UEFA Intertoto Cup: 2000
• Domestic honours: none

Trivia
• Udinese's roots can be traced to the founding of a football division by the Udine Gymnastics and Fencing Society in 1896. The club's black-and-white striped shirts have won them the nickname of the 'Zebrette' (Little Zebras).

• Udinese were the only European club that Brazilian legend Zico ever played for, between 1983 and 1985. Other famous Friuli old boys include Argentina striker Abel Balbo, goalkeeper Dino Zoff – from nearby Mariano del Friuli – and German forward Oliver Bierhoff, who set a club record of 27 league goals in 1997/98.

• Opened in 1976, the Stadio Friuli also has facilities for fencing, gymnastics, martial arts and athletics. The Red Hot Chili Peppers and Madonna have also played concerts in the arena in recent years.