Freiburg vs. Holstein Kiel preview: Can the visitors end their wait for an away win?

Holstein Kiel

Freiburg begin 2025 in ninth position after winning seven, drawing three and losing five of their 15 league matches. The Breisgau-Brasilianer finished 2024 in disappointing fashion, suffering a heavy 5-1 defeat in their away meeting with reigning champions Bayer Leverkusen. That forgettable result extended Freiburg’s winless away run to five Bundesliga matches, meaning they have gone over three months without a league win on the road.

Having struggled on their travels, Julian Schuster’s side will be pleased to have home advantage for their first competitive outing of the calendar year. The hosts have won three and drawn one of their last four home league games, including their previous two outings at Europa-Park Stadion against Borussia Mönchengladbach and Wolfsburg. Freiburg will enter Saturday’s contest with aspirations of claiming three consecutive home league wins for the first time since October/November 2022.

Team News

Freiburg are unable to call upon the injured Daniel-Kofi Kyereh and Bruno Ogbus, while Philipp Lienhart is set to miss out through illness.

Holstein Kiel

Kiel are languishing in 17th place after winning two, drawing two and losing 11 of their 15 Bundesliga matches. Marcel Rapp’s side may have found life tough going in their first Bundesliga campaign, but they managed to finish 2024 on a positive note, as they fought back from a goal down to hammer Augsburg 5-1 at Holstein-Stadion. That impressive result moved them to within two points of Heidenheim in the relegation playoff spot. 

However, they will have to put together a consistent run of form if they are to close the six-point gap to safety in their remaining 19 matches. Rapp will also be aware that his side need to improve on their travels, having seen his team draw two and lose five of their seven top-flight away matches. The relegation-threatened club have lost each of their previous four away league games since they held Leverkusen to a 2-2 draw on October 5. Kiel will head into Saturday’s fixture with hopes of finally ending their wait for their first Bundesliga away victory.

Team News

The visitors are expected to be without Patrick Erras, Colin Kleine-Bekel, Marvin Schulz, and Steven Skrzybski.