Boateng brace nods Schalke past Bremen
Gelsenkirchen - FC Schalke 04 survived an early scare to record a 3-1 home victory against SV Werder Bremen.
Kroos setback
Felix Kroos' first-ever Bundesliga goal put the visitors in front, but a Kevin-Prince Boateng brace and Jefferson Farfan's second of the season put an end to Bremen resistance.
Schalke started the match against Bremen with a mixture of motivation and trepidation. After a heavy defeat to Chelsea FC in the UEFA Champions League, it was obvious the Royal Blues wanted to make amends, but Jens Keller's team seemed just as scared of suffering a further defeat to Robin Dutt's charges.
Julian Draxler carved out the home team's first chance of the game, but Sebastian Mielitz made a fine save to deny the Royal Blues' midfielder. Schalke were creating the better of the chances, until Kroos pounced on a loose ball and fired past Timo Hildebrand to score his first Bundesliga goal in 22 games from the edge of the penalty area.
Boateng at the double
Adam Szalai wasted two good chances to level and Draxler made a hash of his shot from ten yards, before Eljero Elia tested Hildebrand at the other end. Schalke stepped up a gear in the second half, and they were soon rewarded.
Draxler's deep cross was met by a determined Boateng, who rose at the far post to head the ball back in the opposite direction and into the far corner of Mielitz's goal. Boateng then nodded Schalke in front from another Draxler cross, this time heading the ball into the ground for it to bounce into the top right-hand corner. Boateng and Draxler combined once again to pull the ball back for Farfan, who duly wrapped up the victory for the home side.
Line-ups and statistics
