SC Freiburg is in the final of the UEFA Europa League. The Freiburg team deservedly prevailed against the Portuguese club Sporting Braga and wrote club history.
SC Freiburg won the second leg of the Europa League semi-final against Sporting Braga 3-1 (2-0). Despite the 1-2 first leg defeat, coach Julian Schuster’s team is now in a European final for the first time in the club’s history – the final of the Europa League on May 20th in Istanbul. The opponent there: Aston Villa. Freiburg’s Lukas Kübler (18th and 72nd minutes) and Johan Manzambi (41st) scored the goals in the second leg against Braga, while Pau Victor (79th) scored for the Portuguese.
Freiburg defense chief Matthias Ginter described the success as “unreal.” “We all did it together, now we are overjoyed and of course we have to take the final step,” said Ginter, looking ahead to the final in Istanbul.
SC Freiburg outnumbered early on
In what was probably the biggest game in the club’s history, Freiburg started better than Sporting Braga. Already in the first minute, the South Baden team entered the guests’ penalty area, but a shot from Nicolas Höfler after 40 seconds did not pose a goal threat.
Five minutes later, the thousands of Freiburg fans were torn from their seats for the first time. Igor Matanovic set the stage for Niklas Beste with a pass worth seeing. He ran alone towards the Portuguese goal. Braga striker and first-leg winner Mario Dorgeles only knew how to help himself with a foul. Referee Davide Massa rightly decided on the emergency brake and a red card for Dorgeles.
Lukas Kübler contributes to the majority Opening goal around
Niklas Beste took the free kick himself. The ball deflected out of the goal (9th). Freiburg was now pressing for an early lead, the majority was clearly noticeable on the field. In the 18th minute the ball was in the visitors’ goal for the first time: Freiburg veteran Vincenzo Grifo crossed from the left into the penalty area. Braga defender Vitor Carvalho cleared it right at the feet of Lukas Kübler. The Freiburg defender took the ball and maneuvered it rather awkwardly towards the goal. The ball bounced back and forth between Braga player Jean-Baptiste Gorby and Kübler’s thigh and finally rolled into the bottom left corner – 1-0 for Freiburg, 2-2 on aggregate.
Shortly after the much celebrated opening goal, Freiburg’s Johan Manzambi had the chance to immediately follow up. His shot from 18 meters landed in the arms of Braga’s goalkeeper Lukas Hornicek (22′). The Freiburg playmaker did better in the 41st minute of the game. Philipp Treu set Manzambi up with a pass and the Swiss shot from 20 meters in a central position. The beautiful finish hit the right corner of the visitors’ goal. The 2-0 result caused ecstasy in the stands and among the Freiburg players, who celebrated their goalscorer.
Scary moment before the break – Braga with the chance to connect
Shortly before referee Massa blew the whistle for half-time, Braga had a great chance to connect. Victor Gomez broke into the Freiburg penalty area on the right, went past SC goalkeeper Noah Atubolu and hit the post from a tight angle. The Freiburg defense blocked the follow-up shot from his teammate Rodrigo Zalazar (45th +1). It was the final scene in an intense first half.
Superior Freiburgers start the second half strongly
Even after the restart, the sports club got off to a good start. After an assist from the strong Beste, Grifo hit the post with a low shot (47′). A little later, Matthias Ginter’s shot went just wide of the goal (49′). And Manzambi also tried again from a distance. Braga goalkeeper Hornicek saved his shot strongly (52′). The 3-0 was now in the air, Freiburg restricted Sporting Braga in their own third of the field.
But Braga also had the chance to get close in the second half when they were outnumbered and thus equalize after the first and second leg. Pau Victor sent Gorby into the Freiburg penalty area on the left. Atubolu was able to save his shot from nine meters away (58th). Eleven minutes later, Joao Moutinho tried a shot from the edge of the penalty area. Atubolu would have been beaten but the ball whizzed just past the right corner of the Freiburg goal (69th).
Lukas Kübler makes himself a Freiburg hero
Anyone who thought that the sports club would be unsettled was quickly disappointed. First, Hornicek, the best Braga player in the game, saved twice in quick succession from Matanovic and Ginter, who finished from close range (70′). Two minutes later, the strong goalkeeper was also powerless. Grifo served a free kick from the half field perfectly onto Kübler’s head. And the defender coolly headed the ball into the far corner (72′). That deserved a 3-0 win for SC Freiburg.
Sporting Braga keeps the game exciting
The first final in the club’s history now seemed very close for Freiburg. But Sporting Braga did not surrender without a fight. In the 79th minute of the game, the guests scored a free kick. Joao Moutinho crossed the standard into the penalty area, where Victor Gomez crossed the ball onto the second post, completely unchallenged. Victor stood there and beat Atubolu from close range to make it 1:3.
The goal unleashed new strength in the guests. The Portuguese now took control of the game and pushed for an equalizer after the return leg. In the 88th minute, Atubolu saved a long-range shot from Gorby. And even deep into stoppage time, the Freiburg keeper was the winner against Gabri Martinez’s shot (90th + 6). A little later, Massa blew the whistle, sending Freiburg into the final of the Europa League. The sports club fans stormed the pitch and celebrated the greatest success in the club’s history together with the Freiburg players.
Aston Villa is waiting for SC Freiburg in the final
The opponent in the Tüpraş Stadium in Istanbul is Aston Villa on May 20th at 9 p.m. The “Villans” beat the Nottingham Forrest team in the all-English semi-final. After the final celebrations, SC Freiburg is now back to everyday league life. On Sunday (May 10, 3:30 p.m.) the sports club will play at Hamburger SV (live in the audio stream on Sportschau.de).
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