Werder Bremen had to settle for a draw in the first leg of their UEFA Cup tie after a 1-1 result at home against Carlo Ancelotti’s Milan. ÂÂ
Diego was the man to save Werder as his 84th minute equaliser handed the home side a rather lucky point at the Weser Stadion. ÂÂ
After starting the game brightly Werder allowed Milan to take control of proceedings and Filipo Inzaghi duly gave the Italians the lead after 36 minutes. ÂÂ
Werder relied predominantly on Diego throughout the match, but it didn’t look like they were going to get anything out of the game until the mercurial Brazilian chested down a Claudio Pizarro flick on six minutes from time before slotting past Dida in the Milan goal. ÂÂ
Astonishingly, Werder very nearly won it late on when Massimo Ambrosini headed against his own post and Pizarro blasted horribly wide with the goal at his mercy. ÂÂ
“We played much of the second half more or less going towards our opponent’s goal and against Milan that gives us hope†trainer Thomas Schaaf said after the game. ÂÂ
“Unfortunately we didn’t convert our dominance into more goals. 1-1 against Milan is not a bad result, but not enough reward for the effort we put in. ÂÂ
“If we play like we did tonight in Milan, then we won’t be without a chance of getting through†he added.