The league phase of the UEFA Europa League is slowly drawing to a close. Just two matchdays remain before it is confirmed which eight teams qualify directly for the round of 16 and which 16 clubs will have to contest the play-offs for the remaining eight places. Those final places will already be confirmed next week, after the final round of fixtures, when Freiburg travel to face Lille (Thursday, 29th January, 21:00 CET).

“A lot is at stake for us. We can take a big step towards progressing on Thursday,” said SC captain Christian Günter, who sat alongside head coach Julian Schuster at the pre-match press conference ahead of the game against Maccabi Tel Aviv. Still unbeaten after six matches (W4, D2), Freiburg currently sit fifth in the table on 14 points and are well placed to secure direct qualification for the last 16 ahead of their final home game of the league phase.

The fact that the match will take place under heightened security measures due to the political situation has also been a topic within the squad and coaching staff in the build-up. “Of course, you would wish for a different setting, but the reality is sadly such that these measures are necessary,” Schuster explained. “Our focus, however, has to be on the football.”

Günter echoed that sentiment, adding: “Of course we don’t only talk about football in the dressing room, but the topic is very complex.” The Freiburg captain also expressed regret at the decision of the club’s active fan scene to stay away from the match. “We know how valuable the support and atmosphere are on an evening like this. That’s why we’re grateful for every fan who is there and we’ll try to win the game for them.”

The Israeli record champions have so far picked up just one point – from a 0-0 draw away at PAOK on matchday 1 – and currently sit second from bottom in the table, with only a slim chance of reaching the play-offs. While Freiburg signed off for the Europa League winter break in December with a 1-0 win over FC Salzburg, Maccabi Tel Aviv suffered a 4-1 defeat away at VfB Stuttgart on the last matchday, their fifth consecutive loss in the league phase. That run came against strong opposition, however, with Lyon (6-0 defeat), Aston Villa (2-0) and Danish champions FC Midtjylland (3-0) also among their recent opponents – the teams currently occupying the top three places in the table.

“They’ve faced very strong opponents and still had good moments and chances in all of those games,” Schuster noted. Maccabi Tel Aviv are a side that rely heavily on possession in their domestic league. “They definitely have players who know what to do with the ball. We’ll be prepared for that.”

In terms of personnel, the situation is similar to last Sunday's 2-2 Bundesliga draw away at FC Augsburg. Alongside Daniel Kofi Kyereh (rehabilitation training), Philipp Lienhart remains unavailable. According to Schuster, the defender is “going through the normal recovery process” following his abdominal muscle injury sustained against Hamburger SV, but has not yet returned to team training.

Günter underlined the clear objective of reaching the round of 16 without having to go via the play-offs – which would mark Freiburg’s third consecutive Europa League last-16 appearance. “We ultimately want to do as well as we can,” the captain explained. “But it would also mean we could save energy in February and have two additional weeks to train hard together.”

Photo: SC Freiburg