Christian Günter hails Freiburg’s progress ahead of Europa League final

Christian Günter looks ahead to the Europa League as SC Freiburg clash with Aston Villa for European glory. The 33-year-old captain shared his optimism in the pre-match interview.

“I've been a Freiburg fan since I was a child,” Günter said about the connection between him and the club he captains. “To be standing here today in Istanbul, in a Europa League final, is something very, very special not only for us as a team, but for the entire club.

“The development of the club has been incredible, and I think we deserve to crown it with something special. We still need to take one more step tomorrow, though.”

The left-back spent his entire professional career at the club he joined twenty years ago. Although he didn’t feature in the competition since the first-leg of the Round of 16 tie against Genk, the eight-time German international is still a big factor behind the scenes with his experience and leadership quality.

“It's about getting the maximum out of ourselves and bringing our strengths onto the pitch,” added Günter regarding the big final. “We don't want to do anything out of the ordinary just because it's a final. We just need to focus on exactly what has defined us throughout the season.

"We know we’re coming up against a very strong side with outstanding individual quality and a manager with incredible experience, especially in European competitions. But those factors cannot be allowed to play too big a role once you're out on the pitch. That's why I'm feeling very positive about it. Anything can happen."

Freiburg’s captain also spoke about the experience of playing a European final on neutral ground. “It's always a pleasure to travel to another country with the team, especially for a final. Once you arrive here, see the city and see the stadium, the feeling really becomes even stronger. It means you've done a lot of things right over the course of the season. We're itching to get out onto the pitch already.”