Allofs slams Pizarro over dismissal

The Werder Bremen director of sport, Klaus Allofs, has criticised on-loan striker Claudio Pizarro for the red card he picked up in his side's 1-0 defeat at Karlsruhe. The Chelsea forward, who is on loan at Bremen until the end of the season, was sent off after lashing out at opponent Martin Stoll in stoppage time at the Wildparkstadion. And Allofs was unable to hide his unhappiness at the show of ill-discipline.

"It not only damages the player, it damages the team and Werder Bremen," he said. Pizarro's dismissal compounded another disappointing performance for the side, who have been unable to find their rhythm so far this season. "We are simply not consistent enough but we have to realise things will not change overnight," added Allofs. Bremen now have to lift themselves in time for tomorrow, when they host Inter Milan in what is a must-win Champions League game, if they are to stand any chance of remaining in Europe this season.

* PA Sport