SC Freiburg made a bright start to the game, enjoying more possession as well as the better of the early challenges. The hosts looked surprisingly unsettled and repeatedly made careless mistakes. Jordy Makengo fired off the opening attempt on goal after just two minutes, sending a first-time effort from 20 yards well over the bar following a throw-in. Maximilian Eggestein came much closer from a similar position nine minutes later, his volley missing the target by a matter of inches.

Freiburg’s coaching staff made wholesale changes to their attack following Saturday’s 2-1 win away to Augsburg, with Vincenzo Grifo, Keisuke Goto, Cyriaque Irié and Igor Matanovic replacing Derry Scherhant, Yuito Suzuki, Niklas Beste and Lucas Höler in the starting XI. Patrick Osterhage had not travelled to Turkey due to muscular problems. The hosts, meanwhile, named former Liverpool players Mohamed Salah and Fabinho in their starting line-up. Star striker Franculino, who had already scored three goals in two Conference League appearances, was absent with a thigh problem.

SC make first corner count

Trabzonspor had conceded just eight goals in their opening ten league matches, but goalkeeper André Onana was beaten after only 14 minutes on Thursday evening. Grifo’s delivery from the first corner of the game found Matanovic in the middle, and although Onana managed to save his header, the Manchester United loanee was powerless to prevent Kübler from converting the rebound. Freiburg had grabbed the lead early on. Matanovic almost doubled the visitors’ advantage shortly afterwards, but the Croatian striker’s shot following a turnover high up the pitch by Philipp Lienhart was blocked at the last second (21’).

The side sitting third in the Süper Lig continued to struggle when playing out from the back and initially offered little going forward either. However, a Salah free-kick that narrowly missed the target in the 26th minute appeared to give Thomas Reis’ side a much-needed confidence boost. The contest became considerably more even from that point onwards. Ernest Muci fired narrowly wide from range (29’), before Eggestein’s close-range effort from another Grifo corner struck Batista Mendy on the thigh (36’).

Trabzonspor’s best chance of the half fell to Salah five minutes before the break, but the Egyptian failed to convert from 13 yards despite being completely unmarked. At the other end, Grifo tried to curl an effort into the far corner from 11 yards, but his shot from the left side of the box drifted narrowly wide (43’). Freiburg therefore took a narrow but deserved lead into the changing rooms. “We played very well in the first half and gave very little away,” said Julian Schuster after full-time. “I would have liked us to score a second goal before the break. But we said that if we weren’t clinical enough in front of goal, it was important to make sure we defended everything that came our way.”

Backhaus preserves Freiburg’s lead

The hosts looked to get Salah involved more frequently after the restart, and the Egyptian began to have a greater influence on proceedings. The four-time Premier League Golden Boot winner had a golden opportunity to equalise in the 61st minute. Following a corner and a flick-on from Paul Onuachu, Salah looked certain to score from just three yards out, but Mio Backhaus spread himself superbly to make an outstanding save. Trabzonspor enjoyed more possession throughout the second period but rarely managed to get into dangerous positions. Time was on Freiburg’s side, and Schuster introduced Scherhant and Suzuki, two fresh attacking players capable of posing a threat on the counter.

In the closing stages, however, the pair were primarily needed for their defensive work. Reis’ side pushed for an equaliser, but SC defended intelligently. A header from towering, six-foot seven-inch striker Onuachu following a Salah corner took a slight deflection and dropped narrowly wide of Backhaus’ goal (85’). The Freiburg goalkeeper was called into action one final time against Salah in the second minute of added time, but gathered the ball comfortably. “We knew this team would create chances in this stadium, but they were few and far between,” said Julian Schuster in his post-match press conference. “That meant we were able to come away with a very important victory today.”

With six points from their opening three games, SC Freiburg have put themselves in a strong position ahead of their next two Conference League fixtures, both of which will be played at home. Freiburg return to Bundesliga action on Sunday when they host 1. FC Union Berlin, ahead of the final international break of the calendar year.

Photo: Marco Steinbrenner / DeFodi Images