The DFB-Pokal match against SV Werder Bremen (Wednesday 18:30 CET) will be a particularly special one for Nils Petersen. The striker was plying his trade in Bremen between the summer of 2012 and January 2015 before moving to SC Freiburg on loan and subsequently signing a permanent deal. Petersen shares his thoughts in an exclusive interview with DFB.de on his past with Werder, his personal highlights in the DFB-Pokal, and his plans for Christmas.
DFB.de: Mr Petersen, will there still be a lot of emotions for you when you face SV Werder Bremen away from home?
Nils Petersen: Yes, away games in Bremen are still very special for me. I remain in close contact with a few players there, such as Zlatko Junuzovic, Gebre Selassie and Fin Bartels, who unfortunately are injured at the moment. I also was working back then with Florian Kohfeldt, now the head coach, when he was Viktor Skripnik’s assistant.
DFB.de: How do you look back on your two and a half years with SV Werder Bremen?
Petersen: I had a good time in Bremen. It is always great when you arrive at a new club and score goals quickly. I scored eleven times in my first season there. Thomas Schaaf was a brilliant coach and he put his trust in me. I was given less game time in my second season with his successor, Robin Dutt, but I still got goals. Unfortunately that was a period when it became clear that Werder Bremen was going to be fighting to avoid relegation.
DFB.de: Things then did not go so will for you under Viktor Skripnik…
Petersen: He preferred Davie Selke and Franco Di Santo up front, so I had to play further behind. Both of them did well, whereas my performances were not as strong during this period, so I don’t blame the coach for that, it was my fault.
DFB.de: Are there similarities between SV Werder Bremen and SC Freiburg?
Petersen: Both clubs have a good reputation throughout Germany. There are many clubs in the Bundesliga that people either love or hate, whereas Bremen and Freiburg are received very well all over.
DFB. De: If it goes down to penalties, would you be prepared to take one?
Petersen: (laughs) It’s true that I am quite experienced now but you can always miss one, especially since a shootout is a completely different kind of pressure. I experienced that myself in the final of the Olympics in 2016 (Petersen missed the decisive spot-kick). That is why I am hoping that we can seal the match in Bremen before it gets to that.
DFB.de: What have been some of your personal highlights in the DFB-Pokal?
Petersen: There are three that I have. It was amazing just to even experience the final in 2012 with Bayern. I also managed to make it to the semi-final with Energie Cottbus in the 2010/2011 season, beating Wolfsburg, Hoffenheim and Freiburg along the way. I had already reached the semi-final before with Carl Zeiss Jena in the 2008/2009 season, when we went on to play Dortmund in front of 80,000 people. That was incredible for me as an 18-year-old.
DFB.de: Did that perhaps also provide you with a springboard?
Petersen: Yes, the DFB-Pokal really can be a good springboard, which is why it is important that the smaller sides continue to play against the big clubs. That is how players who have not yet been noticed can make a name for themselves. This huge platform can be used really well in order to get your name into the notebooks of the Bundesliga teams. That is what happened with me.
DFB.de: SC Freiburg picked up a fair few points as the first half of the season drew to a close, but their start was a poor one. How do you explain these two different levels of performance?
Petersen: Just like Werder Bremen and 1. FC Köln, we had a good 2016/2017 season, which has increased the expectations on us. This time we started badly unfortunately, were knocked out of the Europa League and only just scraped past a Regionalliga team in the DFB-Pokal. Things also were not going great in the Bundesliga.
DFB.de: SC Freiburg were labelled as one of the favourites to go down…
Petersen: Many had already written us off and were hopping that Köln and Freiburg would occupy the relegation spots. But you can never write us off because of our team spirit and we never let it get to us when things aren’t going according to plan. Our advantage is that the pressure from the media on us is not as big as some of the other clubs.
DFB.de: Christmas is just around the corner. Last year, you told us that you flew to England with your father Andreas Petersen to watch Manchester United and Liverpool play. Where will you be off to this year?
Petersen: I’ll be heading to watch Arsenal and West Ham United. My father and I want to make it an annual ritual, because otherwise you cannot see these teams play during the season. We both live for football, my father is a coach himself. It is lovely to do something together.
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The DFB-Pokal match against SV Werder Bremen (Wednesday 18:30 CET) will be a particularly special one for Nils Petersen. The striker was plying his trade in Bremen between the summer of 2012 and January 2015 before moving to SC Freiburg on loan and subsequently signing a permanent deal. Petersen shares his thoughts in an exclusive interview with DFB.de on his past with Werder, his personal highlights in the DFB-Pokal, and his plans for Christmas.
DFB.de: Mr Petersen, will there still be a lot of emotions for you when you face SV Werder Bremen away from home?
Nils Petersen: Yes, away games in Bremen are still very special for me. I remain in close contact with a few players there, such as Zlatko Junuzovic, Gebre Selassie and Fin Bartels, who unfortunately are injured at the moment. I also was working back then with Florian Kohfeldt, now the head coach, when he was Viktor Skripnik’s assistant.
DFB.de: How do you look back on your two and a half years with SV Werder Bremen?
Petersen: I had a good time in Bremen. It is always great when you arrive at a new club and score goals quickly. I scored eleven times in my first season there. Thomas Schaaf was a brilliant coach and he put his trust in me. I was given less game time in my second season with his successor, Robin Dutt, but I still got goals. Unfortunately that was a period when it became clear that Werder Bremen was going to be fighting to avoid relegation.
DFB.de: Things then did not go so will for you under Viktor Skripnik…
Petersen: He preferred Davie Selke and Franco Di Santo up front, so I had to play further behind. Both of them did well, whereas my performances were not as strong during this period, so I don’t blame the coach for that, it was my fault.
DFB.de: Are there similarities between SV Werder Bremen and SC Freiburg?
Petersen: Both clubs have a good reputation throughout Germany. There are many clubs in the Bundesliga that people either love or hate, whereas Bremen and Freiburg are received very well all over.
DFB. De: If it goes down to penalties, would you be prepared to take one?
Petersen: (laughs) It’s true that I am quite experienced now but you can always miss one, especially since a shootout is a completely different kind of pressure. I experienced that myself in the final of the Olympics in 2016 (Petersen missed the decisive spot-kick). That is why I am hoping that we can seal the match in Bremen before it gets to that.
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DFB.de: What have been some of your personal highlights in the DFB-Pokal?
Petersen: There are three that I have. It was amazing just to even experience the final in 2012 with Bayern. I also managed to make it to the semi-final with Energie Cottbus in the 2010/2011 season, beating Wolfsburg, Hoffenheim and Freiburg along the way. I had already reached the semi-final before with Carl Zeiss Jena in the 2008/2009 season, when we went on to play Dortmund in front of 80,000 people. That was incredible for me as an 18-year-old.
DFB.de: Did that perhaps also provide you with a springboard?
Petersen: Yes, the DFB-Pokal really can be a good springboard, which is why it is important that the smaller sides continue to play against the big clubs. That is how players who have not yet been noticed can make a name for themselves. This huge platform can be used really well in order to get your name into the notebooks of the Bundesliga teams. That is what happened with me.
DFB.de: SC Freiburg picked up a fair few points as the first half of the season drew to a close, but their start was a poor one. How do you explain these two different levels of performance?
Petersen: Just like Werder Bremen and 1. FC Köln, we had a good 2016/2017 season, which has increased the expectations on us. This time we started badly unfortunately, were knocked out of the Europa League and only just scraped past a Regionalliga team in the DFB-Pokal. Things also were not going great in the Bundesliga.
DFB.de: SC Freiburg were labelled as one of the favourites to go down…
Petersen: Many had already written us off and were hopping that Köln and Freiburg would occupy the relegation spots. But you can never write us off because of our team spirit and we never let it get to us when things aren’t going according to plan. Our advantage is that the pressure from the media on us is not as big as some of the other clubs.
DFB.de: Christmas is just around the corner. Last year, you told us that you flew to England with your father Andreas Petersen to watch Manchester United and Liverpool play. Where will you be off to this year?
Petersen: I’ll be heading to watch Arsenal and West Ham United. My father and I want to make it an annual ritual, because otherwise you cannot see these teams play during the season. We both live for football, my father is a coach himself. It is lovely to do something together.
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