Frustrated Schuster praises Aston Villa’s perfect display

SC Freiburg were unable to win their first major trophy on Wednesday, losing 3-0 to Aston Villa in the Europa League final. After the game, Julian Schuster reflected on Freiburg’s poor performance on the night in an interview with RTL.

"For the moment, I don't feel any satisfaction," Schuster started his assessment of the game. The 41-year-old stressed that “only the first 40 minutes were up to the standards” in a game that “hurts a lot”.

"It's always a certain consideration of what space you provide. They play it perfectly and optimally, of course," said Schuster regarding Villa's first goal by Youri Tielemans that started with a short corner-kick routine.

"For the second goal, it's just our mistake, especially after the second ball. You have the urge to go back to its original position quickly, and so we were clearly outnumbered," was the verdict by Schuster for the second goal by Emiliano Buendía in the final action of the first-half.

Schuster complimented Freiburg for a better start to the second-half, but he added they should’ve got a goal early. "It was not enough, unfortunately. We will certainly be able to reflect with a few days away, with a bit of time, and what we have achieved together with our fans."

The former central midfielder ended the interview by looking at the positives as Freiburg will return to Europe with a Conference League participation in 2026/27. “Today is for us an experience from which we could become better. We can realistically assess where we stand and what is necessary. We will take that with us from today.”