In recent years, SC fans have come to expect plenty of drama in the second round of the cup. In 2021/22, the Breisgau side needed a late equaliser to take the game to a penalty shootout against Osnabrück, while Matthias Ginter headed in another equaliser late on against FC St. Pauli to take the game to extra time. Freiburg ended up winning both games and advancing to the next round.
Following on from the team’s 2-0 win against SV Oberachern in the first round, head coach Christian Streich is expecting Wednesday’s game to “be another close affair, where we will need to leave it all out there in order to reach the next round.” Under Lukas Kwasniok, who spent time as a player and coach at Karlsruher SC, SC Paderborn currently sit in 12th place in Bundesliga 2 with 15 points from 11 games. The team suffered a 3-1 defeat in the league at Hertha BSC last weekend, but cruised past Energie Cottbus in the opening round of the cup with a 7-0 win.
When asked about the opponent during Tuesday’s pre-match press conference, Streich said “They are a strong team. Paderborn are a variable side who are able to change their formation as needed during the game. We had to consider several different scenarios.” The head coach warned that his side need to be prepared for Sirlord Conteh’s pace and Florent Muslija’s creativity, as well as former Freiburg man Max Kruse’s “exceptional left foot.”
Müller to start in goal
The head coach did not reveal too much about his starting line-up for tomorrow, but did confirm that Florian Müller will start in goal. “Noah has worked hard and performed well by bringing a lot of stability to the team,” Streich said, adding that the goalkeeper has earned a break as a result. “He deserves one and it’s not a problem for Noah.”
Streich might rotate a few other players are well, following last weekend’s narrow defeat in Leverkusen (“Several players have featured in many games already,” he said), but injuries to Roland Sallai and Maximilian Philipp mean the coaching staff will have to consider their options carefully.
A total of 31,500 tickets have been sold for Wednesday’s clash at the Europa-Park Stadion.
Kyereh resumes running
Streich also provided an update on Max Rosenfelder and Daniel-Kofi Kyereh. According to Streich, “Things are looking better” for Rosenfelder, who is currently dealing with patellar tendonitis. “It’s about figuring out how we can get him back to a point where he can handle the demands of playing professional football. He’s very eager to get back to it.”
Kyereh has also made strides in his recovery after his ACL tear, after having felt some pain after resuming running over the last weeks. “We’re all waiting to see when he is able to run without any pain, at which point he will be able to move on to the next step in his recovery,” said Streich.
Photo: Achim Keller