The final goal in the 3-1 defeat to Borussia Dortmund is still being talked about six days on. It was a goal that brought explanations, opinions and debates about the offside rule to the surface. In Thursday’s press conference, Christian Streich was asked whether the controversial nature of the goal will give his side extra motivation against VfB Stuttgart on Sunday: “Actually it won’t,” said Streich. “We are motivated by the fact that we want to play well in Stuttgart. That’s all the motivation we need.”

The statistics show how motivated the Freiburg players are when they go into these tasty Baden-Württemberg derbies. Stuttgart are without a win in the last six meetings between the two clubs and SCF have won the last four. The gaffer’s feet, however, remain firmly on the ground. “That means nothing. It is a match between two clubs on an equal footing and all results are possible. We’ll have to see who takes the initiative.”

Respect on both sides

The head coach is well aware of the tough test that awaits his side on Saturday: “VfB are in decent shape and you can see that from their results. They were seconds away from getting the win against Bremen and they managed to get a good point against Leipzig.” Streich also believes that Stuttgart will be boosted by the returning Sasa Kalajdzic and Silas.

His counterpart in the Stuttgart dugout, Pellegrino Matarazzo, was also full of respect for the opposition in the build-up to the game: “Freiburg are a complete team and have an answer for everything. It is a mature side that has grown together over the years. We have to we weary and we need to know what is required in each individual moment.”

A sold-out Mercedes-Benz Arena

The match at the Mercedes-Benz Arena, parts of which are currently under reconstruction, is sold out and 47,500 fans are expected. 4,000 SCF fans will be packed into the away end. Lukas Kübler, Lucas Höler and Kevin Schade, however, are all set to miss out due to injury.

Christian Streich also commented on newcomer Merlin Röhl in Thursday’s presser: “He is big, dynamic and brings a good level of energy. We are delighted that he is with us. He has lots of potential. It could be the case that he plays in the second team pretty soon, but he could also play for us anytime. There are a lot of games coming up and Chicco Höfler and Maxi Eggestein won’t be playing every single one in that position.”

Guaranteed a place in Freiburg’s squad on Saturday, however, is Michael Gregoritsch. The 28-year-old Austrian netted in both of the opening Bundesliga matches and has made a great start to the season. “The goals help both him and the team. They give him lots of confidence and that makes the work a bit easier.” Gregoritsch’s solitary goal in 10 appearances against Stuttgart came in March this year, when his then side Augsburg were beaten 3-2. With crossers like Christian Günter, Vincenzo Grifo und Ritsu Doan in the team, Gregoritsch has ever chance of repeating that feat on Saturday.

photo: Achim Keller