Strong home form, set pieces, self-belief: SC Freiburg opposition profile

Last Sunday, at a quarter to six, it still looked as though this weekend’s Bundesliga clash between FC Bayern and SC Freiburg (Sunday, 17:30 CEST) would take on a different complexion. The Breisgau-based side had taken the lead in the 14th minute of their game at Leverkusen through new Germany international Derry Scherhant, moving them back to top spot in the table ahead of Bayern. Despite a decent performance overall at the BayArena, however, SCF were unable to hold on to their lead and their defence instead found themselves beaten twice by the Leverkusen attack.

Freiburg lose top spot

“I don’t think we had to go home empty-handed; we could definitely have taken that one point with us,” said head coach Julian Schuster later, expressing his frustration at the 2–1 defeat to the Werkself, which saw his team lose their top spot in the table. Schuster explained the opposition hadn't scored their goals through any brilliant build-up play, rather “we simply didn’t defend well enough in those moments”. Moreover, his team had shown that “even away from home against a side as strong as Leverkusen, we can at least hold our own and even control the game for spells”.

Schuster’s comments reflect the great self-belief that Freiburg have built up over recent years. The loss in Leverkusen was not just any old defeat, but their first in what was already their tenth game of the season (eight wins, one draw) – never before have the Breisgau side made such a strong start to a Bundesliga campaign. This means Freiburg’s run of success – which reached its peak last season with their run to the Europa League final – shows no sign of abating. The Black Forest side are once again competing in Europe this season as Conference League participants – making it their fourth appearance in the last five years.

The foundation for this success has always been the calm environment in Freiburg, where young talent can flourish. Even though the Breisgau-based club is now posting record turnover figures, expensive signings are not part of the Freiburg model. So it was only logical that, for example, the departure of last year’s rising star Yohan Manzambi was offset by a player who had previously come through the SCF youth ranks. That player, Yannik Engelhardt, found himself – somewhat surprisingly – in the Germany squad shortly after his return from Mönchengladbach, alongside Philipp Treu, Max Rosenfelder and Scherhant, all of whom made their breakthrough at Freiburg.

Freiburg is no longer just a club that develops young players; it also offers good reasons for them to stay there. In recent years, SCF have developed a well-drilled squad centred around experienced players such as Matthias Ginter, Maximilian Eggestein and Vincenzo Grifo, who, with their tried-and-tested mechanisms and routines, are laying the foundations for the club’s current success. Dangerous set pieces are practically a traditional part of the Black Forest side’s repertoire: in all three Bundesliga home games this season, SCF’s opening goal came from a corner (a league record), whilst in their first Conference League game against Jablonec, Grifo scored the opener from a direct free-kick.

Freiburg’s scoring record

Their dominance in the air inside the opposition’s box is also evident from the fact that Freiburg have already scored four goals from headers in the Bundesliga (also a league record). Their haul of 15 goals after six matchdays is a new club record. But at the other end, their defensive capabilities are also solid, and Schuster’s side have allowed the fewest shots on goal (51) of any team apart from Bayern (40). SCF are particularly strong at home, where they've not only won all five competitive matches this season but are also unbeaten in almost six months.

Freiburg's last defeat at home came in April against FC Bayern, when the Munich side secured victory thanks to a goal from Lennart Karl in the ninth minute of stoppage time. As in their previous encounter in the first half of the season (6–2), Vincent Kompany’s side found themselves 2–0 down at one stage before managing to turn the match around. That's not the only reason why the record champions should be on their guard.

Will Bayern break the ‘league leaders curse’?

If the stats are anything to go by, Freiburg’s defeat in Leverkusen was no fluke, but inevitable. The teams who have gone into each matchday this season as league leaders have not managed to win a single game (four draws, one defeat) and have immediately relinquished the top spot on each occasion. So now it's up to Bayern to break this ‘curse’ and defend the top spot in Freiburg.

Try our Matchday Quiz ahead of the clash: