Bremen holds Milan to 1-1 draw in UEFA Cup
The Associated PressPublished: February 18, 2009
BREMEN, Germany: Diego scored late for Werder Bremen to draw with AC Milan 1-1 in the UEFA Cup round of 32 on Wednesday.
Filippo Inzaghi put Milan ahead after 36 minutes of the first-leg match. Diego equalized in the 84th.
David Beckham came off the bench in the 89th for Ronaldinho and Kaka did not even come to Bremen. The home team dominated the match but could not convert its majority of chances, while Milan relied on infrequent fast breaks. Gianluca Zambrotta hit the crossbar of his own goal with a clearance attempt in injury time and Claudio Pizarro drove the rebound over the goal.
Inzaghi scored after a poor clearance by Clemens Fritz. Mathieu Flamini picked off Fritz's attempt to find his midfielders, charged down the right side and crossed to Inzaghi. Inzaghi's header was blocked by Per Mertesacker but the ball fell back to Inzaghi and the striker slotted home.
Bremen had its best chance one minute into the game, when Diego's corner found Alexandros Tzolis unmarked. But his weak shot was collected by goalkeeper Dida.
The home team turned the pressure on in the first 15 minutes but had few more chances and Milan restored the balance, with Bremen goalkeeper Tim Wiese turning away a good shot by Flamini.
Bremen had more possession early in the second half, too, and Hugo Almeida sent a free kick wide, before Dida had to stretch to save from Diego. Almeida then connected with a header at the far post but sent it wide. On the other side, Inzaghi and Flamini tested Wiese from long range.
In the 66th, Inzaghi hit the post after a counterattack. Dida then fumbled another free kick by Almeida, but Milan's defense cleared.
Bremen finally notched the equalizer when Almeida headed down to Diego, who controlled the ball with his chest and put the ball in with his left foot.
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2009/02/18/sports/SOC-Bremen-Milan.php
not the result I expected but we get the return leg at the Sans Siro
