Huge blow for Werder Bremen as midfield ace Jens Stage suffers serious thigh injury

[p]The 29-year-old was Werder Bremen's most reliable scorer in the past two years, netting ten league goals each season. On Friday, Jens Stage had to cut a training session short, and the shocking diagnosis followed later on Sunday.[/p][p]"[b]Jens has been our most important player over the last two years[/b]," said captain Marco Friedl on the injury at the DAZN microphone: "[b]Of course, this is devastating news for us, a terrible blow for him. For us players and the entire club, it's extremely tough. But I'm confident that the management will act before Tuesday[/b]."[/p][p]Coach Daniel Thioune was also visibly shocked by the Scandinavian's absence: "[b]We wanted to start this season together. This really hits us hard. He is an absolute key player for us. We will miss him[/b]."[/p][p]His team now has to "[b]first of all, compensate for his goal threat and box-to-box runs[/b]. [b]On a personal level, it's a huge loss. He is a leader in this team, someone who holds the dressing room together[/b]," said Thioune.[/p][embed guid="ccc90a9b-a60a-4e00-87bc-0bdd6237fc31" url="https://x.com/WerderUpdates/status/2094034851028516906" social-type="twitter" /][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/soccer/freiburg-fiEQZ7C7/werder-bremen-Ig1f1fy3/?mid=vBft9bGL"]Match Center: Freiburg vs. Bremen[/a][/b][/p][h2]Fritz promises a new signing.[/h2][p]Managing director Clemens Fritz described it as a "[b]huge shock[/b]" on DAZN. Stage is "[b]a player who is extremely important for us, both in the dressing room and on the pitch[/b]."[/p][p]He promised Werder fans a new signing by the deadline day on Tuesday: "[b]We all know: there isn't much time left. Still, we're working on it, we want to reinforce the midfield, we're in talks – and I expect that we'll get something done before the transfer window closes[/b]."[/p]