SC Freiburg have continued to give their own young players the chance to impress in Germany’s top flight under coach Julian Schuster, which led to a number of firsts over the past season, both within the squad and the coaching team. Several players also scored their first ever goal in the Bundesliga too.

Julian Schuster

Julian Schuster’s touchline debut as a Bundesliga head coach came on 24th August 2024. Fans, the media and everyone involved in football in Germany were eager to see how he would do as he succeeded the legendary Christian Streich. Nine months later, Schuster and his coaching team – with his assistant Patrik Grolimund and video analyst Franz-Georg Wieland also in their maiden Bundesliga campaign – can safely say they have been successful. Qualification for next season’s Europa League is the reward for their hard work. “Following in Christian’s footsteps remains a great honour for me. I’m extremely grateful that the club placed their trust in me. My colleagues are extremely open and are always motivated towards improving our game,” said Schuster after his first season as head coach.

The 40-year-old first game against VfB Stuttgart was a special one, with SC winning 3-1 on the opening weekend. “We’re really happy about this derby win,” he said back then. 33 games later, Schuster looked back on that victory: “I was far more nervous during the week than on the day of the game itself. I was just excited and felt good. It was the perfect start and gave us something to build on for the rest of the season. It was definitely one of the key moments of the whole campaign.”

Johan Manzambi

The away game against Borussia Mönchengladbach provided a special moment for youngster Johan Manzambi. He headed in Ritsu Doan’s cross in the 90th minute to seal all three points for SC with what was his first ever Bundesliga goal. “I’m feeling too many emotions right now. The main thing is that we won and got all three points. I’m happy,” were Manzambi’s words with a huge smile on his face after the final whistle. The 19-year-old had only made his Bundesliga debut back in September in the 3-0 win at Heidenheim. Manzambi’s dream season was topped off in recent weeks by a first call-up to the Swiss national team by coach Murat Yakin: “Johan is playing in the Bundesliga at the age of 19 and is already one of his side’s key players. He’s a versatile attacker and therefore a really interesting player for us.”

Max Rosenfelder

Max Rosenfelder had a similar season to Manzambi, also making his Bundesliga debut and scoring his maiden goal in the division. The Freiburg native was thrown straight into the starting XI on the opening weekend against VfB Stuttgart, though it took the defender a while to notch his first league goal for the club, finding the back of the net on matchday 31 away against VfL Wolfsburg. His left-footed strike into the far corner left him stunned for a few seconds before his emotions took over. “I’m so happy, today was such a nice day.” Once again, Rosenfelder’s goal, like Manzambi’s, was an important one, as it earned SC all three points.

Kiliann Sildillia

While Kiliann Sildillia was less emotional after his maiden Bundesliga goal, it still made the youngster very happy. “Everything is perfect today. A goal, three points and a clean sheet – it’s a great day for us all.” The defender’s first top-flight goal for SC came on matchday 20 as he headed in the only goal of the game away at VfL Bochum. The Frenchman then found the back of the net again three matchdays later. His second Bundesliga goal came in the 5-0 home win over Werder Bremen and was one for the history books too – the stunning overhead kick was later voted as February’s Goal of the Month.

Bruno Ogbus

Bruno Ogbus made his SC debut on the opening matchday, coming off the bench late on against VfB Stuttgart to also appear for the first time in the Bundesliga. He came on again on matchday 2 but is still working on his return from an Achilles tendon rupture suffered in December.