Even if this was the second meeting between the two sides at the London Stadium within a few months, the permutations of the game couldn’t have been much different. The sides last faced off here in the final match of the group stages, having both already secured their progression into the knockout rounds. The game only decided which of the two teams would qualify directly for the round of 16, but on Thursday evening, it was a make-or-break match.
In the first leg at the Europa-Park Stadion, the visitors from Freiburg were able to earn themselves a small advantage going into the second leg at the London Stadium, as Michael Gregoritsch’s late goal gave SCF a one-goal lead going into the return fixture.
Freiburg started with the same XI that began last week’s first-leg victory a week ago. Compared to the line-up that began the league win in Bochum, only Michael Gregoritsch came out of the side in place of Lucas Höler.
Hammers coach David Moyes decided on four changes to the side that began their 2-2 draw against Burnley at the weekend. Cup goalkeeper Lukas Fabianski replaced Alphonse Areola, and Kurt Zouma, Edson Álvarez and Michael Antonio came in for Nayef Aguerd, Kalvin Phillips and James Ward-Prowse respectively.
In their last fixture at the London stadium, a much-changed Freiburg side failed to play with conviction and deservedly lost 2-0. Three months later, SCF made a more active start to the game, but it would be the hosts to whom the first chance of the game would fall, as Jarrod Bowen got on the end of a throw-in and tested Noah Atubolu from a very tight angle, but he produced a quick reaction save to tip the ball over the bar (4’).
Paquetá scores early on
David Moyes’ side’s hunger to quickly cancel out the deficit of the first leg was clear. With just eight minutes on the clock, the Irons had already won several corners, and the fourth of these ended up in the back of Atubolu’s net. The cross came in from the left and was flicked onto the far post, where Lucas Paquetá got free from his man and poked the ball home from close range (9’).
Freiburg went straight back down the other end in search of a leveller, and after being set up nicely by Maxi Eggestein, Roland Sallai’s drilled shot from ten yards missed the frame of the goal by a matter of inches (10’).
It remained a fast-paced game. The hosts aggressively pressed Freiburg’s defence and there was intense challenge after intense challenge in midfield. SC could also count themselves lucky that Mohammed Kudus couldn’t convert from six yards after a great individual piece of play from Michail Antonio and shot a fair way wide of Atubolu’s goal (17’).
Bowen bags Hammers’ second
Although the Premier League’s seventh-placed side made their present felt more in front of goal in the first half an hour, the away side in white were getting more and more into the game. Therefore, it was twice as frustrating that the hosts’ second goal came in what had been the visitors’ best phase of the game so far. Jarrod Bowen shrugged off Christian Günter’s challenge on the edge of the box before firing a powerful effort past a helpless Atubolu and making it 2-0 to West Ham on the night (32’).
Just like after the first goal, SCF had a chance shortly after conceding to get one back for themselves. Maxi Eggestein’s first-time shot from 13 yards was unfortunately deflected before being comfortably collected by Lukas Fabianski (37’), and Christian Günter’s solo run into the opposition box from the left flank was also ended up with the ball in the hands of the experienced keeper (40’).
Come the half-time whistle, Freiburg’s one-goal lead had become a one-goal deficit. The coaching staff reacted, bringing Michael Gregoritsch on for Vincenzo Grifo after the break, and the substitute was straight into the action, heading Roland Sallai’s cross well over the bar (47’).
Irons cement their lead after half time
SC made a good start to the second half, but the next dampener in the battle for a place in the quarterfinals came shortly afterwards. The Freiburg defence didn’t clear the ball properly after a cross in from the left wing, and it fell to Aaron Cresswell who took aim and curled the ball in via the inside of the post to make t 3-0 (52’).
The 2,500-strong travelling support did what they could to support their side as they looked to find a way back in the game, but Freiburg were lacking pace and creative ideas in the final third against a compact West Ham defence. Two misplaced long-range attempts from Florent Muslija and Merlin Röhl would be the only shots made by the away side until the final 15 minutes of the game.
The compact defence gave the London-based side space to counter, and it was from a counterattack that Mohammed Kudus killed Freiburg dreams, running half the pitch and finishing coolly to score a great solo goal and the Hammers’ fourth (77’). Kudus would also go on to score the hosts’ fifth (85’).
Despite being convincingly knocked out the tournament, the travelling Freiburg fans applauded their team after the final whistle, celebrating the end of a second consecutive season playing in Europe. Head coach Christian Streich didn’t want to be too harsh on his side, either: “I didn’t feel like West Ham played us off the park over the 90 minutes. We were a bit awkward on the ball, and they showed their immense individual quality. Therefore, the final score unfortunately got away from us.”
Photo: DeFodi Images