“Get the fans fully on board”

The pre-match press conference saw fashion play an unusually important role. The news that Freiburg will be wearing their white third strip against their Swabian opponents raised a few questions amongst the conference attendees, but there was a relatively simple explanation for it. VfB’s green away strip would have caused a clash for players and spectators with red-green colour blindness, and the decision was made by the management at Freiburg to ensure there will be no problems on that front.

Regardless of the colour of their kit, SCF’s opponents on Saturday will provide a stern test, having given an impressive demonstration of their potential in last weekend’s 5-2 triumph over RB Leipzig. “Stuttgart’s quality has been evident since last season. They were very strong in the second half of the season,” said Christian Streich. “Obviously they have possibilities through the companies that support them. Because of that they’ve got a very strong team who are tactically and technically very good.” Stuttgart currently sit third in the table – “fully deserved,” reckons the Freiburg head coach.

Gulde returns to the starting XI

Roland Sallai returned to training for SCF this week after overcoming an illness. Ritsu Doan continues to be unavailable, with the Japan international progressing to the quarterfinals of the Asian Cup with his national team after scoring the opener in a 3-1 win over Bahrain. Manuel Gulde will return to the starting lineup after suspension, as his head coach revealed: “Manuel Gulde will play. We’ll see whether we play with two or three centre-backs.”

Christian Günter could also be making his return to the squad after five months on the sidelines. “I wanted to give him a run out with the reserves last week, and then he got ill,” said Streich. “Now we’re deciding whether he’ll be in the squad or playing for the reserves. I think he’ll probably be with us in the squad.”

Going into the derby in a positive mood

The captain’s return could provide an additional boost for his teammates and for the fans. The mood on Achim-Stocker-Straße has been fairly good of late despite defeat against Bremen, as Streich reported. “We wanted to go into the home game with a positive mindset, really take the game to our opponents and get the fans fully on board with our style of play,” said Streich.

Freiburg may have lost the reverse fixture 5-0, but recent statistics suggest a more positive outcome could be on the cards this weekend. SCF had won the previous six Bundesliga matches between the two sides, and are undefeated in their last seven Bundesliga home games. Stuttgart, meanwhile, have lost their last three away games.

Photo: Achim Keller