There are some football matches that leave you slightly baffled afterwards. Matchday 1’s game against Augsburg was exactly that. Almost every statistic favoured SCF, who, according to expected goals, had good enough chances to score at least three, but had to accept a 3-1 defeat once the final whistle blew.

Last Wednesday’s defeat to RB Leipzig was a much more deserved loss. While Freiburg gave up very little for their opponents to exploit before the two quickfire goals, it was a toothless performance going forward, save for a single headed attempt from Maximilian Eggestein. “We made the wrong decisions after we won the ball back, even though the space was there. Our runs were also lacking at times,” said head coach Julian Schuster in his press conference ahead of this weekend’s game. “Despite the quick turnaround, we’ve tried to deal with these issues in training, so that we can use the space better on Sunday and be more effective from set pieces than we were against Leipzig.”

Five months into the current campaign, then, and SC are back up against FC Augsburg in the first reverse fixture of 2025/26. It will be Manuel Baum in the opposition’s technical area this time round, though, with the head coach having taken over from Sandro Wagner after the latter’s stewardship came to an end in December. SC have come to terms with their matchday 1 defeat, although the day hasn’t been at all forgotten: “It was one of those games where we came away having learned some important lessons. We’ve constantly got the memory of those first two games in the back of our minds. We can’t change what happened, we can’t get those points back, but it helps us in our approach as we move forward,” explained Schuster.

There will be a spontaneous reunion with Michael Gregoritsch this weekend, with the striker now out on loan at FCA, having left SC for Denmark just this summer. “I really didn’t think that we’d be facing him in a game as soon as this,” said Schuster, noting the three former Freiburg players currently in the ranks at Augsburg: “On the one hand, it’s always lovely to see a few familiar faces again, but of course during the match they’re very much part of the opposing team. It’s up to us to leave the friendships to one side for the 90 minutes.”

In terms of the latest on the squad, the defensive situation is looking a little less fraught than before. Both Matthias Ginter and Max Rosenfelder are back in team training and could be involved in this weekend’s match. SC will feel the backing of 1,400 travelling fans as they cross the border into Bavaria, and the ticket office in Augsburg will be open on Sunday for any supporters hoping to attend at short notice.

Photo: Achim Keller