Hamburg (AP) – Even Christian Streich gave the celebration beast for a moment. The SC Freiburg coach stood alone on the grass in Hamburg’s Volkspark Stadium in front of the 6,000 fans who had traveled with him and celebrated the first-ever entry into the DFB Cup final in Berlin.
The 3-1 win at second division soccer team HSV in the semifinals is a milestone in the club’s history, which is closely linked to the name of the 56-year-old. And another can be achieved in May: qualifying for the Champions League for the first time.
However, HSV not only missed their seventh final for the DFB Cup due to the defeat. The game against Freiburg was also the last chance for coach Tim Walter’s team to add some shine to a mediocre season in which the current sixth-placed team in the second division will probably not be able to return to the Bundesliga for the fourth time.
Difference: SC Freiburg made it clear against HSV how big the difference in quality is between the 1st and 2nd divisions. Efficient at the front when taking advantage of opportunities, consistent at the back when defending. Even if Hamburg tried again and again with playful means and stayed true to their style, Freiburg acted like a calm top team.
Scene of the game: This was after the final whistle and had less to do with football. In the middle of an interview on ARD with presenter Jessy Wellmer and expert Bastian Schweinsteiger, Freiburg’s coach Streich was given a water shower by his players. Streich took it with humor and smiled. Everything was allowed for the Freiburgers that evening.
Desired opponent: Whether on Wednesday evening (8:45 p.m. / ARD and Sky) RB Leipzig or 1. FC Union follow in the final, Christian Streich ultimately doesn’t care. “You have to exist and try to win the game – and if we don’t win, we were in Berlin after all,” he said on ARD. The scorer for the 2-0 victory, Nicolas Höfler, saw it in a similar way: “We’re playing against the winner, I don’t care.”
Courted: Nico Schlotterbeck showed why he is currently at the top of the shopping lists of top clubs with a strong performance against HSV. However, the 22-year-old defender did not confirm reports of an agreement with Borussia Dortmund after the game. “I said I’ll make my decision after the season, nothing has changed about that,” said the national player on Sky. He had more important things to do that evening than thinking about the future. Only the present mattered to him. “Now I enjoy the evening and see what I get the boys to drink.”
Sold out: For the first time since February 22, 2020, the Volksparkstadion was fully occupied again. At that time, HSV had lost the city duel in the 2nd Bundesliga against rival FC St. Pauli 0:2. This time, too, 57,000 spectators attended, including 6,000 Freiburg supporters. Again it wasn’t enough to win. But despite the defeat, the HSV fans celebrated their team after the final whistle. “The mood was outstanding,” said defender Moritz Heyer.