Wiese laments failure to grasp the nettle

Tim Wiese was left with the usual litany of 'what-ifs?' after Werder Bremen's UEFA Cup final defeat by FC Shakhtar Donetsk, but insisted that with silverware still on offer this season, the Bundesliga outfit will swiftly move on.

'Overawed'
"We did not do enough," said the 27-year-old goalkeeper after Werder's dreams of becoming the sixth German team to lift the trophy were dashed. "We missed too many opportunities. We should have taken more shots from distance, but maybe we were a bit overawed." Thomas Schaaf's men certainly began nervously, falling behind midway through the first half, but within ten minutes it was all-square as Andriy Pyatov could only fumble Naldo's free-kick into his own net. Having soaked up significant Shakhtar pressure the stage increasingly appeared set for a Bremen win as the game wore on but according to Wiese his attacking team-mates "did not get enough from our opportunities".

Absentees
The 90 minutes came and went, yet with things apparently in hand disaster struck for Bremen midway through the first period of extra time. Darijo Srna worked space by the right corner flag and, despite being off-balance, managed to find Jadson with his centre, and the Brazilian fired in, the diving Wiese just failing to keep it out. There was no way back for the German side, so dearly missing the cutting edge of suspended pair Diego and Hugo Almeida in attack. "Some important players were missing for us," said Wiese. "Maybe it would have been a different game if they had played. We just weren't aggressive enough; it is one of the key factors behind our defeat – we should have done more up front."

Redemption? 
Already resigned to a disappointing tenth-place finish in the Bundesliga, Schaaf's team may yet end the season on a high, however, with the German Cup final against Bayer 04 Leverkusen to come on 30 May. Wiese for one believes they will be ready: "We are professional players, and even now we need to start focusing on the German Cup final."