The road to the final

SC are preparing for the biggest game in the club’s history: the UEFA Europa League final. This Wednesday at 21:00 CEST, SC Freiburg will take on Aston Villa in Istanbul. Freiburg have already come through 14 matches against 11 opponents on their way to the final at Besiktas Park – here's a look back at the league phase and the three knockout rounds.

 

On Wednesday, the Europa League anthem will ring out once more for SC and their fans – this time in the final against Aston Villa in Istanbul. SC Freiburg got their European campaign off to a strong start with a 2-1 opening win over FC Basel. Maximilian Eggestein and Patrick Osterhage scored the goals to settle the first league-phase game in SC's favour. A point on the road in Bologna. After improving after the break, SC Freiburg stayed unbeaten after two matchdays with a draw at the Stadio Renato Dall’Ara. Second home game, second home win. Yuito Suzuki and Vincenzo Grifo were on target in the 2-0 victory over FC Utrecht, on a night rounded off by an impressive tifo from the Freiburg fans. Sport-Club had to deal with a sparse crowd, underinflated balls and falling behind in Nice, but they showed character and turned the game around in the south of France through goals from Johan Manzambi, Vincenzo Grifo and Derry Scherhant. There were no goals in Czechia, but SC Freiburg still came away with a point. The goalless draw away to Viktoria Plzeň came after an even contest, left head coach Julian Schuster satisfied and kept SC unbeaten in Europe, with 900 travelling fans backing the team. An Austrian provided the winner against RB Salzburg. Philipp Lienhart scored in the 1-0 victory, giving Julian Schuster exactly the response he had asked for: “I said I wanted to see heart, and that’s exactly what I saw.” The result also ensured SC Freiburg would still be in the Europa League after the league phase. It was a matchday that required considerable preparation off the pitch. On it, SC did the job against Maccabi Tel Aviv, with Igor Matanovic scoring the only goal of the night before celebrating a fourth straight Europa League home win with his teammates. SC came within seconds of going through the league phase unbeaten, until stoppage time in Lille. Olivier Giroud converted from the spot, and Freiburg ultimately finished seventh. There was plenty for SC to address after the first leg of their round-of-16 tie against KRC Genk. The 1-0 defeat in Belgium had not seen everything run as smoothly as usual, but Julian Schuster’s message was clear: “Everything is still possible in the second leg.” …and the team made sure it was. After a 5-1 win, SC were into a European quarter-final for the first time. SC laid down a marker in the first leg of the quarter-final against Celta Vigo, winning 3-0 at the Europa-Park Stadion. Vincenzo Grifo, Matthias Ginter and Niklas Beste got the goals. A brilliant setting, a dominant performance and a place in the semi-finals. SC also took care of business in the return leg in Vigo, winning 3-1 thanks to Igor Matanovic’s opener and two goals from Yuito Suzuki to reach a European semi-final for the first time. SC conceded in the final minute at Braga’s famous Estadio Municipal, meaning they headed into the semi-final second leg trailing 2-1. An early red card for the visitors gave SC the upper hand in the second leg. Lukas Kübler and Johan Manzambi struck before half time, Kübler added another after the break, SC won 3-1, the fans flooded onto the pitch and the club were in the UEFA Europa League final.
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