Road to the final: Werder Bremen

Having flirted with disaster in the UEFA Champions League group stage, all-action Werder Bremen proved to be great entertainers in the UEFA Cup. The German side were almost as generous in defence as they were prolific in attack, scoring 15 goals and conceding 12 after entering the competition in the Round of 32.

UEFA Champions League Group B
Kicking off with a 0-0 draw at home against Cypriot outsiders Anorthosis Famagusta FC, Bremen flirted with an early exit. After two further draws and a 3-0 Matchday 4 home loss against Panathinaikos FC, a fourth tie - 2-2 at home against Anorthosis - left them bottom of the section ahead of Matchday 6. However, goals from Claudio Pizarro and Markus Rosenberg helped them win 2-1 against FC Internazionale Milano at the Weserstadion to take third place.

Round of 32
Bremen 1-1 AC Milan
AC Milan 2-2 Bremen (agg: 3-3, Bremen win on away goals)

Struggling in the Bundesliga, few gave Bremen much hope of survival after being paired with tournament favourites Milan, especially after the Italian titans drew 1-1 at the Weserstadion in the first leg and went 2-0 up 33 minutes into the San Siro return. Claudio Pizarro, however, was to overturn the odds, registering with two headers in the space of ten second-half minutes to stun Europe.

Round of 16
Bremen 1-0 AS Saint-Etienne
AS Saint-Etienne 2-2 Bremen (agg: 3-2)

Paired with a St-Etienne side having an even worse season in their domestic league than they were, Thomas Schaaf's men made no mistake, and having won 1-0 at home – Naldo scoring the only goal – they took a 2-0 lead at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, and could afford to concede twice as they earned a comfortable progression.

Quarter-finals
Bremen 3-1 Udinese Calcio
Udinese Calcio 3-3 Bremen (agg: 6-4)

Diego was the star of both legs as Bremen almost threw away a comfortable lead at the Friuli Stadium. The Brazilian playmaker struck twice as Schaaf's charges won 3-1 at home, but by half-time in the second leg the tie was level with Udinese 3-1 up and pressing for glory. Diego, who had already struck in the first half, headed home from a rebound to re-ignite Bremen's fire, and while they missed a penalty later on, Pizarro finished from a corner to make it 3-3 on the night.

Semi-finals
Bremen 0-1 Hamburger SV
Hamburger SV 2-3 Bremen (agg: 3-3, Bremen win on away goals)

Having lost in their previous three UEFA Cup semi-final appearances, Bremen looked to be heading for the exit once more after a 1-0 loss at home to north German rivals Hamburg. However, once more they were involved in an action-packed second leg away from home, trailing to an Ivica Olić strike before Diego, Pizarro and Frank Baumann struck to put them ahead in the tie. Olić's late second could not deny them a trip to the final.