The final international break of the year is behind us, meaning SCF can start preparing for a busy schedule to see out 2025. Seven matches in 23 days await record appearance maker Christian Günter and his teammates before the well-deserved winter break begins after the game in Wolfsburg. Five Freiburg players were in international action over the past week, with a great deal of success. Igor Matanovic (Croatia), Philipp Lienhart (Austria) and Johan Manzambi (Switzerland) all booked their ticket for next year’s World Cup finals. Noah Atubolu’s second Germany call-up saw also saw him celebrate World Cup qualification.

Despite the strain of travelling and the added workload of international fixtures, training was very well attended on Thursday. Everyone apart from Daniel-Kofi Kyereh took part. “Having everyone available after such a busy schedule is really helpful, especially considering the busy run ahead of us,” commented Julian Schuster. Cyriaque Irié was able to take part in an internal match during the international break, but the 20-year-old still won’t be available for the trip to the Allianz Arena. “The way the boys really pushed themselves in that test match was great,” said Schuster. “There’s a lot of guys really chomping at the bit to be involved.”

Set pieces as a useful weapon?

It’s well known that Freiburg’s record in Munich is not good, having failed to score in their last three visits to the Bavarian capital. There is one encouraging statistic though: seven of SCF’s 13 goals so far this season have come from set pieces. Bayern, meanwhile, conceded both of their goals in the 2-2 draw with Union Berlin from set pieces. 
“They won’t have forgotten how their last game went,” said Schuster. His opposite number Vincent Kompany only had a small group of players to work with over the international break, as 16 of his squad were off with their respective nations. “You can get opportunities against Bayern – Union showed that, as did Köln at times in the Pokal. We need to find that balance of being both nasty and aggressive, while also being creative and courageous,” said Schuster.

Chicco Höfler emphasised his coach’s point on the latest episode of the official SCF podcast: “You definitely need to be courageous. Often teams will travel to Munich and be too cautious. I think if you’re brave, push yourself to the limit and keep Bayern from reaching 100%, then anything is possible.”

The away section of the Allianz Arena is completely sold out, meaning SCF will travel to Bavaria with an entourage of 7,200 fans