Freiburg move to 2nd with win over Köln
SC Freiburg took care of business on Sunday night at the Europa-Park Stadion, with goals from Woo-yeong Jeong and Michael Gregoritsch to claim all three points.
Christian Streich's well-coached team didn't have much trouble against Steffen Baumgart's club to end Matchday 13. Freiburg's legendary trainer looked emotional after the win, as his side earned their 8th clean sheet of the campaign and moved to 2nd in the Bundesliga table.
Freiburg had several great chances in the opening minutes, but shots from Christian Günter and Vincenzo Grifo couldn't find the back of the net.
Florian Kainz had a chance on goal after a Mark Flekken mistake, but the Breisgau club clearly had more opportunities in the early stages. Freiburg were dominating possession and consistently pressuring Köln's goal throughout the first period.
Streich's side were leading in xG (1.54 to 0.26), but the Billy Goats looked a little more promising just before halftime after escaping some close calls defensively.
In a devastating 53rd minute counterattack, Michael Gregoritsch found Woo-yeong Jeong, who's left-footed finish earned the club from the Black Forest a deserved advantage.
Linton Maina nearly secured Köln an equalizer following another Flekken mistake, but the keeper made an excellent save to keep Freiburg's lead. But then, Günter's picture-perfect cross gave Gregoritsch a free header inside the box which he easily converted in the 64th minute.
Köln couldn't convert any of their late efforts, earning Freiburg a controlled 2-0 victory on a cold Sunday night. Interestingly enough, the only yellow card handed out all game was in extra time.
2nd-place Freiburg have two difficult games next week against Leipzig and Union Berlin, while 12th-place Köln finish off 2022 against Leverkusen and Hertha Berlin.