There was something of a reunion feel around the tunnel before kick-off at the well-attended stadium in Schruns. Dresden head coach Thomas Stamm, his assistant Valentin Vochatzer and players Claudio Kammerknecht, Konrad Faber, Christoph Daferner, Sascha Risch and Luca Herrmann all have previous links with Freiburg. There were plenty of handshakes and catch-ups before the warm-up.

After that warm-up, Merlin Röhl headed straight back to the dressing room. The Germany U21 international had been set to start but was forced to pull out at short notice due to neck pain. Maximilian Philipp came into the starting line-up – a late switch to an unfamiliar position that didn’t help Freiburg’s structure or attacking rhythm.

The first real chance of the game fell to Dresden. Following a scramble in the Freiburg box, summer signing Nils Fröling fired narrowly wide from around seven yards (14’). At the other end, Cyriaque Irié made a powerful run down the right and delivered a dangerous ball into the middle, which the Dynamo defence turned behind for a corner.

Overall, Dresden made the stronger start. They capitalised on a misplaced pass from Philipp in the 22nd minute, with Vinko Sapina slotting in from close range to make it 1-0 and thus giving the second-division side a deserved lead at the first interval.

Florent Muslija replaced Philipp for the second half-hour and Niklas Beste came on for Irié. The pattern of the game, however, remained unchanged. Dresden were sharp and aggressive in what was their final friendly before the start of the 2. Bundesliga season next week. Freiburg, by contrast, struggled to find their rhythm after ten intense days of training.

It wasn’t until the final 15 minutes of the first hour that Freiburg began to create chances. Vincenzo Grifo came close with a shot just past the top corner after some neat interplay involving Philipp Lienhart and Muslija (44’). Soon after, Yuito Suzuki and Grifo combined to set up Christian Günter, whose cutback was cleared just in time. Three minutes later, Grifo found himself one-on-one with the keeper following a clever ball from Suzuki, but Jakob Lemmer timed his sliding challenge perfectly to deny him. The sides went into the main break with Dresden still 1-0 ahead.

As planned, Freiburg changed their entire line-up and began to control possession, however it was Dresden who struck again with their first shot of the second half. Robin Meißner wasn’t closed down quickly enough on the edge of the box and found the far corner with a low finish to make it 2-0 (70’).

That goal sparked the game into life. Lucas Höler pressed aggressively from a Dresden goal kick, won possession and coolly converted the chance himself to pull one back for Freiburg (82’). Just two minutes later, Jordy Makengo gave away a penalty at the other end – but Florian Müller guessed correctly and saved Stefan Kutschke’s spot-kick with a strong dive to his left. Freiburg almost equalised straight away when Eren Dinkci met a cross on the volley from five yards out, only to see his effort fly over the bar (85’).

Early in the final quarter of the match, Müller once again came to the rescue – this time in a one-on-one with former Freiburg player Luca Herrmann (92’). That save proved crucial, as Freiburg levelled the scores moments later. Igor Matanovic showed great strength in the box to hold off several defenders and rifled a shot into the far corner to mark his first goal in a Freiburg shirt (95’).

SC then pushed on as Derry Scherhant pulled the ball back for Höler, who calmly slotted home to complete his brace and put Freiburg 3-2 up (111’). However, the lead lasted just three minutes. Jan-Hendrik Marx equalised for Dresden with a composed finish, and the 3-3 scoreline ultimately reflected the balance of the game.

“It was exactly the kind of test we needed – challenging and against a good opponent. We were really put to the test, and that’s exactly what we wanted,” said SC head coach Julian Schuster after the game. “Of course, there were a few things I wasn’t happy with, such as one or two mistakes that led to goals. But there were also lots of positives, and those are important too. Now we can head home feeling satisfied.”

Dynamo Dresden begin their 2. Bundesliga campaign away to Greuther Fürth on Sunday, 3rd August (13:30 CEST). Freiburg now head into the final phase of pre-season after a rest day on Sunday and Monday.

SC Freiburg XI for the first half: Atubolu – Kübler, Lienhart, Jung, Günter  – Irié (30. Beste), Eggestein, Philipp (30. Muslija), Grifo – Suzuki, Adamu

SC Freiburg XI for the second half: Müller – Treu, Ginter, Höfler, Makengo – Dinkci, Osterhage, Manzambi, Scherhant – Höler, Matanovic

Goals: 0-1 Vinko Sapina (22’), 0-2 Robin Meißner (70’), 1-2 Lucas Höler (82’), 2-2 Igor Matanovic (95’), 3-2 Lucas Höler (111’), 3-3 Marx (114’)

Referee: Matthias Gächter

Attendance: 1,100

Photo: SC Freiburg