As of Tuesday afternoon, 31,500 tickets had been sold for Wednesday evening’s clash with VfL Wolfsburg, with tickets still available for fans hoping to attend. Speaking at the pre-match press conference, SC head coach Julian Schuster explained what makes the competition so special to him. “The DFB-Pokal can give you a boost in the league as well. Every year, it has the potential to be a wonderful journey, but only if you perform well enough.”

Now into the third of four consecutive weeks featuring midweek fixtures, Schuster and his side once again face the challenge of striking the right balance between picking the strongest possible team for their next opponents, managing players’ workloads and keeping an eye on the games ahead. The SC coach stressed, however, that looking too far ahead could be counterproductive. “The danger is that you start thinking too far into the future. You can’t always plan everything down to the last detail.”

Engelhardt available again

Yannik Engelhardt, who missed Sunday’s 3-1 defeat to FC Bayern München with a bruised pelvis, will be available again on Wednesday. Berkay Yilmaz and Bruno Ogbus have also returned to training after their recent injury problems. Although neither will be ready to face Wolfsburg, their returns will give Schuster more options in the coming weeks.

Rihito Yamamoto is a little further along in his recovery, having made his competitive debut for SC Freiburg on Sunday following a lengthy period working his way back to fitness. “I was really pleased for him because it hasn’t been an easy road. He embraced the challenge and understood what was required. He’s now reached a point where we have the confidence to bring him on in a game like Sunday’s,” said Schuster, who was pleased with the Japanese midfielder’s 30-minute appearance. “He showed how comfortable he is on the ball. For the own goal, he made a run that forced the opposition player to intervene.”

Schuster keeping goalkeeping decision under wraps

Florian Müller played every DFB-Pokal game from the second round onwards last season, remaining in goal until Freiburg’s semi-final exit. Mio Backhaus was then given the nod for the 5-1 victory in the first round of this season’s competition. Schuster was unwilling to reveal who would start against Wolfsburg. “We don’t have a designated cup goalkeeper. We assess the situation anew each time. We’re fortunate to have three excellent goalkeepers to choose from.”

SC Freiburg and VfL Wolfsburg have met just twice before in the DFB-Pokal, with both encounters taking place in Wolfsburg. The sides faced each other in the second round in 2006/07 and again in the quarter-finals in 2014/15, with Wolfsburg winning 1-0 on both occasions. Freiburg have, however, lost just two of their last ten meetings with VfL in all competitions.

Photo: SC Freiburg