This was Freiburg’s second visit to Sinsheim in 2022. SC beat Hoffenheim 4-1 in their DFB-Pokal quarterfinal back in January and they hoped for a similar performance on matchday 32. It certainly lived up to expectations. There were two changes to the starting eleven to face TSG, with Manuel Gulde and Lucas Höler coming in for Ermedin Demirovic and Wooyeong Jeong. SC started with a front three, with Kübler and Günter out wide.

It felt like a home game with the support from the Freiburg fans. The away support were vocal from the very first whistle. On the pitch, the hosts carved out a chance after just seven minutes, when Andrej Kramaric found himself in a promising position. However, instead of taking a shot, he looked to find a teammate in the middle, but Nicolas Höfler was there to clear the ball. It was an even contest in the opening stages with referee Marco Fritz encouraging a free flowing game of football. Hoffenheim put their guests under pressure but SC looked to cope by playing out from the back. SCF had their first real opportunity with 17 minutes on the clock, when Nico Schlotterbeck found teammate Roland Sallai with a through ball. David Raum, however, took the ball from the forward as he was about to pull the trigger.

SC and Hoffenheim as clinical as each other

Freiburg took the lead in the 23rd minute, after a slick move on the edge of Hoffenheim’s penalty area was finished off by Rolland Sallai. The 24-year-old was fed by Höler and he curled the ball into the bottom corner, giving the Hoffenheim keeper no chance. “It was a really well worked goal,” said Christian Streich after the game. The goal gave The Breisgauers the momentum and they looked to keep the hosts under pressure. However, it was Hoffenheim who responded. The home side equalised after a Raum cross from the left-hand-side was tapped in by Kramaric in the six yard box. There were few shots on goal up until this point with both sides making the most of their first real opportunities.

It was an intense derby game leading up to half time. Christoph Baumgartner had a chance for the hosts, but he put his effort into the side netting (39’). Schlotterbeck also had a chance for the visitors from a corner, but his header was put over the bar. Vincenzo Grifo had the final chance of the half with a free kick from around 25 yards out, but he too put his effort over the top.

Intense start to the second half

There was a change for SCF at half time, with Nils Petersen coming on for Gulde. The substitution also marked a tactical change, with Streich’s side moving to a back four. The second half got off to a frantic start, with two goals in quick succession. Angelo Stiller gave TSG a 2-1 lead with a rocket from inside the penalty area, that flew past the diving Flekken in the Freiburg goal. However, it only took SCF two minutes to respond, with Günter finding the bottom corner with a shot from around 20 yards (50’). “It was really important for us to equalise as quickly as we did,” Streich explained after the game. The game calmed down somewhat after the two quick goals and it took a while before there was another significant opportunity. And significant it was. A freekick was whipped in from the right-hand-side into a very dangerous position and Höler was there at the back post to head the ball home (70’).

Freiburg’s sucker punch

Just two minutes later, Freiburg made it 4-2. Substitute Jeong got on the end of a long ball and found himself in the Hoffenheim penalty area. His first touch was immaculate and he steered the ball into the goal. The South Korean was delighted and ran over to the away end to celebrate with the Freiburg fans.

The hosts reduced SCF’s lead in the 84th minute, when Rutter tapped in a rebound from 3 yards following a fantastic Flekken save. TSG then threw the kitchen sink at SCF, and the visitors had to defend diligently in order to take home the three points. Flekken made a wonder save in injury time from a Kasim Adams header in order to keep his side in the lead. “We are just happy that we won. We showed the hunger and the desire to win this close game. We turned it round after being behind,” said Günter after the game. 

“It’s superb how the team turned the game on its head. We showed a great mentality and we are coming away the happier of the two sides. It was no fluke that we won that game. Hoffenheim were extremely strong today and that just shows how well we played. It’s great that we won a game like that,” summarised Streich.

photo: Achim Keller