Second-half goals from Marcus Rosenborg and Hugo Almeida put the hosts ahead in the race for second place while leaving Cottbus hovering four points above the relegation zone with three games to go.

Bayern would have been crowned champions before their game on Sunday had Bremen and third-placed Schalke failed to win.

But while Schalke could only manage a draw in their match, Bremen went after the win from the start.

Cottbus keeper Gerhard Tremmel was tested time and again in the opening 25 minutes as the hosts got off to a bright start.

The best of a string of chances fell to Daniel Jensen who was found by a brilliant through ball from Clemens Fritz, but was thwarted by an equally brilliant save from Tremmel.

Then Cottbus turned on themselves as Tremmel had to react quickly as one of his own defenders, Vragel Da Silva, turned the ball goalwards from a Werder free-kick.

As the half wore on it seemed the hosts had been thwarted as their relentless pressure caused them to tire.

Yet Tremmel still needed to remain aware as five minutes before the break Bremen almost opened the scoring when Tim Borowski played Boubacar Sanogo through on goal, but the Cottbus stopper again kept the ball out with his feet.

It was more of the same after the break as a seemingly relentless Bremen attack continued to hammer Tremmel.

And finally it paid off in the 68th minute as the hosts took the lead. Petri Pasanen played a great ball into the penalty area to Torsten Frings, who in turn found Rosenborg who smashed a shot from 10 yards out into the bottom-left corner of the net.

Still no reaction came from Cottbus and 11 minutes later Bremen sealed the win when a fine one-two between Borowski and Rosenborg

split the Cottbus defence, and Borowski made no mistake in picking out Almeida all alone at the far post who tapped in an easy finish.