Rampant Bremen hit Stuttgart for six in relegation thriller

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SV Werder Bremen picked up a crucial win in their relegation six-pointer at home to VfB Stuttgart, recording a resounding 6-2 victory on Monday night.

SV Werder Bremen 6-2 VfB Stuttgart

Goals: 1-0 Bartels (10'), 1-1 Didavi (26'), 2-1 Barba (o.g. 33'), 3-1 Öztunali (42'), 3-2 Barba (53'), 4-2 Pizarro (62'), 5-2 Bartels (80'), 6-2 Ujah (86')

The tension was palpable at a raucous Weser Stadium for a game in which the stakes could hardly have been higher. The hosts dealt with the situation better initially and their committed, hard-running approach soon paid dividends when Fin Bartels collected Claudio Pizarro's through-ball on his chest, evaded his marker and drilled a crisp shot in off the post. The visitors soon rallied, however, and levelled matters when the unmarked Daniel Didavi rifled in from 15 yards after Bremen failed to clear their lines.

There was plenty more drama to come in a frenetic first half. Federico Barba, making only his second Bundesliga appearance, scored an own-goal when trying to head clear a cross, before Didavi almost equalised again almost instantly, only to see his header hit the post. It proved a costly miss, as Bremen gave themselves a two-goal cushion just before the break when substitute Levin Öztunali carved out a pocket of space on the edge of the box and arrowed a shot into the bottom corner.

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There was another twist early in the second half when Barba made amends for his earlier error, reducing the deficit for the guests with a cheeky back-heeled flick from Alexandru Maxim's low cross. Bremen were not content to merely defend their lead, though, and edged ahead again when Pizarro made it 4-2. Bartels and substitute Anthony Ujah sealed the points with late goals to lift the hosts up to 15th and push Stuttgart down to 17th.

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