St. Pauli vs. SC Freiburg preview: Freiburg looking to build off European success

FC St. Pauli

St. Pauli aren't giving up without a fight. After a terrible stretch of form left Alexander Blessin's side seemingly destined for relegation, St. Pauli woke up in February. Wins over VfB Stuttgart, SV Werder Bremen, and TSG Hoffenheim have seen the club double their win tally and go within striking distance of safety.

However, there's still work to be done. A 0-0 draw with Eintracht Frankfurt was solid, but St. Pauli needed a result against Borussia Mönchengladbach. Instead, a brilliant Kevin Stöger free-kick and Franck Honorat's second-half goal handed St. Pauli a 2-0 loss. That loss leaves St. Pauli in 16th in the Bundesliga, and firmly in the relegation battle.

With only eight matches left, Blessin and St. Pauli need to pick up results wherever they can. However, SC Freiburg came away with all three points on their last trip to the Millerntor Stadion in a 1-0 win in February 2025.

Team News:

Karol Mets and Manolis Saliakas are still out with injuries, although both are expected to be back for St. Pauli's next match against Union Berlin. Midfielder Mathias Rasmussen is available again after missing three matches due to injury.

Ricky-Jade Jones remains sidelined with a long-term injury, as does James Sands, who is out for the season.

Predicted Lineup (3-4-2-1): Vasilj, Dzwigala, Wahl, Ando, Pyrka, Smith, Irvine, Ritzka, Fujita, Lage, Sinani

SC Freiburg

Freiburg's recent form isn't anything special. They limped past 2. Bundesliga side Hertha Berlin in the DFB Pokal on penalties, and won only one of their next six games in all competitions. One of those, a 1-0 loss to KRC Genk, left Schuster's side in danger of being knocked out of the Europa League.

But with their backs to the wall, Freiburg responded in a big way. A dominant 5-1 result in the second leg gave the Bundesliga side a massive aggregate win and a spot in the Europa League quarter-finals. Genk never had a chance.

Freiburg will go into Sunday's game confident after their big win in Europe. Their away form in the Bundesliga is hardly promising, though. Schuster's side have not won on the road since December, when they beat VfL Wolfsburg 4-3.

Team News:

Freiburg remain without Daniel-Kofi Kyereh and Max Rosenfelder, who are sidelined with injuries.

Predicted Lineup (4-2-3-1): Atubolu, Treu, Ginter, Leinhart, Günter, Manzambi, Eggestein, Beste, Suzuki, Grifo, Matanović