Our next opponents: SC Freiburg difficult to beat on own turf

Position

Following the 2-0 defeat at the Deutsche Bank Park last Sunday, SC Freiburg dropped behind their neighbours in the table, Eintracht Frankfurt. SCF are now in eighth place on 33 points, just one point behind the Frankfurt club. They are already ten points behind sixth-placed Bayer 04, their next opponents. After the eighth away defeat this term, Freiburg coach Julian Schuster drew a mixed conclusion: "I was very happy, especially in the first half, we had a lot of opportunities that we unfortunately didn't take. We have to face up to that today. We struggled with the final ball, the precision of the crosses and sometimes lacked conviction in one-on-one situations. The positive thing is we get ourselves into these spaces. Today's performance shows us that we're on the right track."

Captain Christian Günter adopted a similar position: "We played well at the back in the first half and we can build on the overall performance. In any case, the battle for seventh place remains open." This place would at least be enough to qualify for the UEFA Conference League. And Freiburg definitely want to be in Europe again next season. The club has looked very good on the European stage so far this season. In the UEFA Europa League, SCF qualified directly for the Round of 16 after finishing seventh in the league phase. The Belgian club KRC Genk are the next opponents on Thursday. And in the third competition, the DFB Pokal, Freiburg still have a chance of lifting a trophy. Like the Werkself, Freiburg are also in the semi-finals, with SCF away to VfB Stuttgart on 21 April, while Bayer 04 host Bayern Munich. Freiburg could therefore possibly qualify for the Europa League via the DFB Pokal.

For SCF, the clash with the Werkself is now the first of three home games within twelve days. Next weekend, Union Berlin are the visitors in the Bundesliga and then Freiburg welcome Genk for the second leg of the Europa League Round of 16. SC Freiburg also have a packed schedule in March.

Personnel

For the game against the Werkself, coach Julian Schuster can once again call on Niklas Beste, who has just served a one-match ban. It is quite possible that the right winger will return to the starting eleven in place of Lucas Höler. Johan Manzambi is also an option for the centre of midfield again. The Swiss player was shown a straight red in the 1-0 win against Werder Bremen at the beginning of February and was suspended for three Bundesliga games. Manzambi could come into the team for Patrick Osterhage.

The two centre-backs Philipp Lienhart (back in training after abdominal muscle injury) and Max Rosenfelder (thigh injury) plus midfielder Daniel-Kofi Kyereh (rehab after torn cruciate) will not be available on Saturday.

In the back four, Schuster has relied on his tried-and-tested full-backs Philipp Treu and Christian Günter in front of goalkeeper Noah Atubolu as well as centre-backs Matthias Ginter and Bruno Ogbus. Maximilian Eggestein, who has started all 24 Bundesliga matches to date and always played the full 90 minutes, is a regular first choice in midfield. The coach has plenty to choose from in the attacking department: In addition to Niklas Beste, set-piece specialist Vincenzo Grifo, Yuito Suzuki, Lucas Höler, Derry Scherhant and Igor Matanovic are all available. The latter, together with Grifo, is top scorer for SCF with six goals so far this term.

Problems

SC Freiburg have seen a huge difference in results between home and away games in the current campaign. While SC Freiburg have picked up 24 points in eleven games at home and have only lost once, the team from the Breisgau have struggled away from home. Even though the performance in the recent 2-0 defeat in Frankfurt was encouraging, they were again left empty-handed in the end. Freiburg lost at Bayer 04 in the Hinrunde by the same scoreline as at Eintracht. SCF are 14th in the away table on just nine points (two wins and three draws with eight defeats). As efficient as the team is at home, they struggle up front on the road. They often lack the final touch and clinical finishing. Freiburg's last away win came at the end of December with a 4-3 victory at VfL Wolfsburg. Nevertheless, Julian Schuster saw a "clear improvement in his team's play, especially on the ball" in Frankfurt compared to other performances away from home. Defensively, Freiburg are particularly vulnerable from corners and in the air: Ten headed goals conceded is the highest number (together with Mainz 05).

Performers

With the 2-1 win against Borussia Mönchengladbach a fortnight ago, SC Freiburg celebrated a fifth home win in their fifth home fixture this year. All of those games were very close with only one goal making the difference in the end. But SC Freiburg are a force at home at the Europa Park Stadion. This is probably due first and foremost to their great defensive stability. Goalkeeper Noah Atubolu has been back on top form since the start of the year. In the back four, the two Freiburg stalwarts Matthias Ginter (32) and captain Christian Günter (33), who between them have played 545 Bundesliga games for SCF, have been doing an outstanding job for weeks along with new signing Philipp Treu and youngster Bruno Ogbus. "How many balls they block is simply a quality they have. You can see the commitment and desire in training to put this into practice and to push each other," said coach Julian Schuster, praising his back four after the narrow win against Mönchengladbach. SCF have only conceded twelve goals at their own ground. Only the Werkself and Borussia Dortmund have conceded one goal less at home. SC Freiburg are also not fazed when going behind: In 16 games, they have trailed at one point, but then picked up a total of 15 points. Only FC Bayern (18) have won more points in this respect. Freiburg are traditionally strong at set-pieces and have been again this season: They have scored 16 goals from dead balls - the third-best number in the league.