Julian Schuster reflects on dream start to coaching career

In only his second season as the head coach of SC Freiburg, Julian Schuster has a chance to win the club’s first major trophy in Istanbul. Ahead of the historic game against Aston Villa for the Breisgau Brazilians, the 41-year-old coach spoke with UEFA.

“Looking at people's faces, you could feel what it meant to everybody,” Schuster reflected on the atmosphere in the vibrant city after Freiburg’s qualification to the Europa League final. “That sense of anticipation is particularly special and obviously very important. Plenty of people have already booked for Istanbul.

"The sense of support and solidarity in the city is now even stronger than it already was. It's great. That's the power of football. It can captivate so many people and bring them together. We're enjoying that at the moment."

With their former midfielder in charge, Freiburg finished in 5th and 7th in the Bundesliga. There was also another cup run as they reached the DFB-Pokal semi-finals. “It would have been presumptuous to even have thoughts like that,” Schuster admitted that his strong start even surprised him.

“What I really discovered was that I enjoy coaching and being able to pass knowledge on. I felt a real desire to be a coach. I'm very grateful that I'm able to experience such great moments so early in my career.”