Union Berlin vs. SC Freiburg preview: The race for the Champions League is on
In captain Christian Günter’s 300th Bundesliga game with Freiburg, the Breisgau club head to the capital and square off in a match that could decide the Champions League places.
| Photo: Steffen Prößdorf, CC BY-SA 4.0 |
Union Berlin
Union looked fairly lifeless in their 1-0 loss to Augsburg last week, but they still sit in one of the expensive Champions League places. It doesn’t get any bigger this weekend against a 5th-place side, who are also after that game-changing 4th-place spot.
This will be captain Christopher Trimmel’s 300th competitive game with the capital club, but it’s unclear if he’ll start from the off. If Union can get past Freiburg, they have favorable matchups against Hoffenheim and Werder Bremen to end the season on a high.
Diogo Leite returns from suspension this weekend and should slot right back into the starting lineup.
In his press conference, Urs Fisher mentioned, "We've qualified again for international business. Now there's a chance of claiming fourth or maybe even third. But, at the same time you can also be sixth at the end."
Team News
There are no injuries or suspensions to report.
SC Freiburg
Vincenzo Grifo scored a hattrick in Freiburg’s 4-1 win over Union back in November. But, the Black Forest club aren’t playing as well this time around and are coming off a brutal week of two home losses against RB Leipzig.
Christian Streich gave a surprise starting opportunity to Noah Weißhaupt on Matchday 31 and also substituted the rarely-used Kimberly Ezekwem, Merlin Röhl, and Jonathan Schmid in the second half. The legendary trainer likely won’t be as generous this Saturday, as Roland Sallai will return to the squad and could start from the off.
When asked how they’ll set up this weekend, Streich said, "It could be that we play with a back three. Of course the question is: who are the players at 100%? How many central defenses are at 100 percent? It could be that we play 3-4-3, 3-4-1-2, or maybe a mix."
Team News
Philipp Lienhart and Ritsu Doan are questionable, while Daniel-Kofi Kyereh is out for the season.