Udinese put faith in controlled aggression

Despite their 3-1 first-leg defeat, Pasquale Marino is confident "the rage still burning within" his players will help Udinese Calcio claw back the deficit and steer them into a first ever major European semi-final at the expense of Werder Bremen.

German setback
The Serie A side, and Fabio Quagliarella in particular, were punished for their profligacy at the Weserstadion last week and a goal in each half from Diego plus Hugo Almeida's effort seemed to have left them dead and buried. Quagliarella made some amends when he hit back three minutes from time to offer his side a lifeline which they hope to grasp at the Stadio Friuli. "We must have the same approach as the first leg," said Marino. "To create as many chances as we did isn't easy in Europe, but we managed it. The speed of our players caused [Bremen] untold problems and we must do that again; we must keep forcing their defence out of shape but be careful not to leave ourselves exposed at the back."

Good habit
Udinese have made their own ground a fortress in the UEFA Cup this season, winning their last four home games including the 2-0 victory against FC Zenit St. Petersburg in the last 16 that ultimately eliminated the holders. A repeat of that scoreline would be enough to take the Zebrette through to the semi-finals and they returned to winning ways at the weekend, even if they did need two late Antonio Floro Flores strikes before earning the points at nine-man Reggina Calcio, the side bottom of the domestic standings.

'Inner rage'
"When they came off the pitch last week their reaction pleased me," said Marino. "They were still burning with rage at the injustice of the result and with the desire to put it right. This desire to make amends and to achieve the result their performance deserved is still burning within and if they use that in the right way we will get the right result."

'Quagliarella quality'
That outcome will have to be accomplished without Italian international striker Antonio Di Natale (knee), defenders Andrea Coda (groin) and Damiano Ferronetti (knee) and midfielder Fernando Tissone (thigh). Yet Marino is confident Quagliarella, who already boasts six UEFA Cup goals this term, can add to his tally on home soil. "Quagliarella gave us hope with his late goal. He always comes up trumps when the going gets tough. He missed chances but to get in those scoring positions at this level is testament to his quality."

Diego concern
Bremen, meanwhile, owe much of their European progress, including defeat of AC Milan in the Round of 32, to influential playmaker Diego. However, the Brazilian (thigh), like Daniel Jensen (achilles), is a major doubt for the second leg, the pair having sat out Sunday's 1-1 draw with Bayer 04 Leverkusen as Claudio Pizarro's 16th Bundesliga goal of the season earned the visitors a point. "With or without [Diego] we can't afford to gift as many chances as we did last week," said coach Thomas Schaaf. "Udinese have fast, technically good and very brave players that can cause problems we will have to stop at source."