SC Freiburg will be taking on FC Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga at the Europa-Park Stadion on 2nd April.
SC Freiburg will be disappointed after playing out a goalless draw with Greuther Furth in their most recent match. Furth are at the bottom of the table and almost look set for the drop. However, this season has been extremely promising for them.
Freiburg have already matched last season’s point tally of 45 points this season with seven games still left to play. They are fifth in the Bundesliga table, level on points with fourth-placed RB Leipzig and only thee points separate them and Bayer Leverkusen in the third spot.
Christian Streich has seen it all during his 11 years with SC Freiburg in which they’ve experienced the ecstasy of playing Europa League, the humiliation of getting relegated as well as the resulting joy of getting back up to the top flight. In front of their own fans in the newly built Stadion, Freiburg are on course to make history this campaign.
A top-four finish in the Bundesliga that will result in Champions League football at the Europa-Park Stadion will obviously be on top of their agenda. However, they will also have one eye on the DFB semi-final against second division’s Hamburger SV on April 19. They will be hoping the reach the final for the first time in their history but there’s still time for that.
For now, the focus remains on hosting German heavyweights Bayern Munich at home. Although Freiburg are unbeaten in their last six league matches, their longest run in the German flight, their record against Bayern is ominous.
They’ve beaten them only once in their last 37 meetings against them with the win coming in 2015. However, Streich and his men will be hoping to pull off an upset here after holding Bayern to a 2-2 draw on home soil last season. If Freiburg can somehow manage a win here, it will see Streich breaking Volker Finke’s record of 104 victories as the club’s head coach.
While finishing in the top four will be an exceptional event for Freiburg, Bayern have gone about business as usual in the domestic league. They are well on course to lift their 10th successive Bundesliga title and are six points clear on top of the table with seven matches still remaining.
Bayern are heading into this on the back of a successful 4-0 outing against Union Berlin in their last match. It was their 20th league victory this season and star striker Robert Lewandowski continued his impressive form with a brace. He has scored 31 goals in the Bundesliga this season and is comfortably on top of the top-scorers’ list.
Bayern might also have one eye on the Champions League quarter-final tie against Villarreal next week, but are expected to be the favourites for a win here against Freiburg. They have found the back of the net in each of the past 17 clashes against them and have scored more than one goal on 12 of those occasions.
Although the defending champions have lost only two of their last 19 matches across all competitions, they have looked shaky defensively lately. They’ve managed only three clean sheets in the last 12 matches and have failed to keep a clean sheet in any of their last seven fixtures against SC Freiburg. Julian Nagelsmann’s side cannot afford to take the opposition lightly here and must be on top of their game.
SCF vs FCB, Bundesliga 2021/22
Date: 2nd April, 2022
Time: 7:00 PM IST
Venue: Europa-Park Stadion, Freiburg
FORM GUIDE:
SC Freiburg Bundesliga form:
- D-W-W-D-W-D
SC Freiburg from (all competitions):
- W-W-W-D-W-D
Bayern Munich Bundesliga form:
- L-W-W-D-D-W
Bayern Munich form (all competitions):
- W-W-D-W-D-W
HEAD-TO-HEAD:
SC Freiburg wins: 1
Draws: 5
Bayern Munich wins: 17
TEAM NEWS:
SC Freiburg Team News: The availability of the trio of Nicolas Hofler, Philipp Lienhart and Jeong Woo-yeong is doubtful after they tested positive for COVID-19 last week. If Hofler is fit to start, he will be able to return to central midfield after serving a one-match suspension in the last game. Janik Haberer is expected to be relegated to the bench following his return.
A broken toe is expected to keep Yannik Keitel out of contention. Kevin Schrade has a stomach bug apparently and he will be evaluated along with Lukas Kubler, who has a minor muscular injury, ahead of kickoff for Freiburg.
Bayern Munich Team News: Niklas Sule has returned from a hamstring injury while Alphonso Davies has overcome his heart condition to return to light training. However, they are not expected to be fit in time for this clash and need to spend more time in training before they are given the medical green light.
Leon Goretzka has recovered from a knee injury while Benjamin Pavard has overcome COVID and both players might be in contention to make the starting XI for Bayern Munich. Pavard is likely to replace Josip Stanisic at right-back.
SC Freiburg possible starting lineup:
Flekken; Schmid, Gulde, N. Schlotterbeck, Gunter; Hofler, Eggerstein; Sallai, Holer, Grifo; Demirovic
Bayern Munich possible starting lineup:
Neuer; Pavard, Nianzou, Upamecano, Hernandez; Kimmich; Gnabry, Musiala, Muller, Sane; Lewandowski
Predictions:
Bayern Munich and SC Freiburg are the two teams with the best defensive record in the Bundesliga this season. Bayern have conceded only 28 goals so far, one better than Freiburg’s 29. Both the teams also have nine clean sheets – the highest in the league this season.
Despite that, they have both looked vulnerable at the back in recent games and will be relying on their respective frontlines to decide the match. Bayern Munich are the overwhelming favourites for this match but Freiburg have shown that they are far from being considered pushovers.
