Julian Schuster was visibly relieved after Freiburg’s last game at home to St. Pauli. “We made things unnecessarily exciting in the end, but what matters is the points,” he said following the 2-1 victory that ended his side’s five-game winless run in the Bundesliga.
Surprise package to Europa League regular
Schuster was voted Germany’s Coach of the Year after guiding Freiburg to fifth place in the Bundesliga in his maiden campaign in charge last season. However, the Black Forest club have been unable to consistently build on those performances again in 2025/26. They may be riding high in the Europa League with 10 points from four games, but the recent St. Pauli fixture was symptomatic of their domestic form. They had things under control for much of the match but were unable to maintain it for the whole 90 minutes, as a seemingly assured home three points quickly turned into a nerve-wracking affair.
That game did end well for them, but several before did not as they failed to see out a lead. Their total of four draws from 10 Bundesliga games is the most in the division, but it also means Freiburg are a team that’s very tough to beat. Schuster’s men have lost only one of their last 13 competitive fixtures (2-0 at Bayer Leverkusen in October), winning seven and drawing five. The only Bundesliga team to suffer so few defeats in that period – and with a similar number of games – is Bayern with zero.
Strong again at set pieces and in defence
Freiburg remain an awkward opponent, especially now the coach has ironed out some defensive issues. They conceded seven goals over opening defeats to Augsburg (3-1) and Köln (4-1), but it’s been just seven in the eight league games since. They do, however, need to step things up somewhat at the other end, with only Heidenheim (108) mustering up fewer shots on goal than their 111.
It means a team must be clinical with the few chances they create, so it’s a big help to Freiburg that their traditional strength at set pieces, which waned somewhat last season, has returned. A total of just 13 goals from dead balls in 2024/25 was the Black Forest club’s lowest total since returning to the top flight in 2016, but they already have seven to their name this term (third in the division) with not even a third of games played. It accounts for 54 percent of their 13 goals scored in the league.
Vincenzo Grifo has long been Freiburg’s master craftsman at dead balls and is again their top scorer with six goals in all competitions, including two from direct free-kicks. Together with full-back Christian Günter, who last matchday became the club’s record appearance maker with 441 games, the pair have formed Freiburg’s prolific left flank for several years. But with the duo now both 32 years old and a busy fixture list, they are no longer necessarily first choice in every game.
A team in transition
Change is already happening at Freiburg. The average age of their starting XI in the Bundesliga this season may be the fourth-oldest in the division (27 years, 213 days), but rejuvenation is under way. Winger Derry Scherhant, 23, signed from Hertha Berlin has fought his way into the team and boasts four goals in 491 minutes of playing time, while 24-year-old Yuito Suzuki, who arrived from Brondby, has found his stride with two goals in his last two games.
Although Igor Matanović, 22, scored a brace in a 3-1 win over VfB Stuttgart earlier in the season, the summer arrival from Eintracht Frankfurt has had to take a backseat in Schuster’s system, which prefers the mobility of Junior Adamu at centre-forward. The loss of Ritsu Doan to Frankfurt hasn’t completely been covered, given 20-year-old newcomer Cyriaque Irié hasn’t played since the opening weekend after contracting malaria.
However, 20-year-old Johan Manzambi has caught the eye following his step-up from the academy. The midfield all-rounder was used as a No.10 at the start of the season but has since dropped into a deeper role. It means that even with midweek European games, Schuster has a number of options in forward areas.
Heading game
That need for rotation makes predicting Freiburg’s team somewhat more difficult, but Germany goalkeeper Noah Atubolu is almost certain to start behind the reliable centre-back pairing of Matthias Ginter and Philipp Lienhart, who both embody another classic Freiburg trait. As a team, the Black Forest club have won 233 aerial duels, which is second in the Bundesliga behind Mainz (242). Three Freiburg players rank in the top 20 in that category with Ginter (fifth), forward Lucas Höler (14th) and midfielder Maximilian Eggestein (19th).
Freiburg will once again be an awkward opponent in this Saturday’s Bundesliga meeting, but they know they will need to step things up if they are to turn around their disappointing history in Munich that has seen them pick up just three points from 25 Bundesliga games (D3, L22).
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