Werder Bremen striker Claudio Pizarro has said yesterday's 5-3 win over Freiburg was so intense that it better than any fitness training. The Peruvian striker got Bremen's second goal to put them 2-1 up before half-time, but Freiburg came back to level at 2-2 and again at 3-3 in an intriguing game which was only decided with two late goals from Aaron Hunt and Wesley.

It was certainly entertaining for the fans inside the Weser Stadion and Pizarro said it even had his own heartbeat racing. "My pulse rate was 180," he said. "This was better than any aerobics training. It was an exciting game to the very end, but had we made it 4-2 then we would have had the game under control. Instead, we had to fight to the very end. I really did not expect a game like this."

Although the three points were important, coach Thomas Schaaf admitted he could not enjoy the game as much as the fans did. "I was very annoyed for a lot of the time," he said.

"Such a spectacle is obviously good for the fans, but I would prefer it to be more clear-cut. We made life difficult for ourselves. Our attack was better today, even though we missed a few chances, but the defence did not play its' part and we have got to find the right balance."