The good news is that every Freiburg player who ventured out on international duty has returned fully fit. Max Rosenfelder, who had to leave the Germany U21 camp early, was in training again this week.
A fit and deep squad will also be needed with the power that the upcoming opponent possesses in mind. “They have a mixture of great physicality and an ability to create chances in the final third. We have to be compact and remain very alert,” warned Julian Schuster regarding FC Augsburg, who beat third-division side Jahn Regensburg 1-0 in their seemingly obligatory friendly match scheduled for the international break.
Freiburg also utilised the break from league action by partaking in friendly action. In the 2-1 win over 1. FC Kaiserslautern, Maximilian Philipp netted twice after being one of the players to see few minutes on the pitch as of late. “Milli was out for a few weeks, but is now back in training. It’s good that he got some minutes and scored a couple of goals. We were generally very pleased to be able to offer a number of players some game time and were satisfied overall with the individual performances in our friendly as well the collective effort,” said Schuster, providing an overview of his assessment.
The head coach also gave an evaluation of the situation that some of the squad players find themselves in. “It is understandable if one or two aren’t completely happy. The important thing is that they don’t only have themselves in mind, rather want to both provide back-up as an experienced player and help out the young players too. That will serve to characterise the players lower down the pecking order.”
With the away win in Bremen a fortnight ago in mind, the target against Augsburg will also be to demonstrate the footballing basics well. “We showed great togetherness, were compact, defended well and were ready to win the second balls. That alertness is what we will need again on Saturday,” said Schuster. As has often been the case this season, a certain amount of patience will also be needed in order to break down Augsburg’s defence.
Statistically speaking, things look promising from Freiburg’s perspective ahead of kick-off on matchday 7. SC have won 10 of 12 Bundesliga home games against Augsburg, with their last home league defeat against them dating back to 2014. Daniel-Kofi Kyereh (rehab after knee surgery), Merlin Röhl (syndesmosis strain), Kenneth Schmidt (recovery training) and Manuel Gulde (back problems) all remain unavailable for this clash, in which the team will hope to better the already good record.
Photo: Achim Keller