Overview
After excellently winning a ticket to the quarter-finals of the UEFA Europa League, Freiburg is dreaming of participating in the European final for the first time, expected to take place in Istanbul in May.
The German team advanced straight to the round of 16 thanks to being in the top 8 of the group stage with a record of 5 wins, 2 draws and 1 loss. In the knockout round, Freiburg made a strong impression when they came back against Genk, winning 5-1 at the Europa-Park Stadion after losing 0-1 in the first leg, thereby reaching the European Cup quarter-finals for the first time in history.
The Bundesliga representative is preparing to face a Spanish team in the continental arena for the first time since the defeat to Sevilla in the group stage of the 2013-2014 season.
Freiburg entered the first leg with a bad mentality after a 2-3 defeat to Bayern Munich. This was a match where they lost the two-goal lead when the opponent scored two goals in injury time. It was also the second consecutive home defeat of coach Julian Schuster's team in the Bundesliga.
However, Freiburg still has a basis for confidence as they have won all 9 recent home matches in the Europa League since the defeat to West Ham United in the 2023-2024 season.
On the opposite side, Celta Vigo aims to extend the success tradition of Spanish teams in the Europa League, after names like Sevilla, Atletico Madrid, Valencia and Villarreal.
Unlike Freiburg, the Galician team had to go from the play-offs after only finishing 16th in the group stage. They successively overcame PAOK and then surprised by eliminating Lyon in the round of 16.
After a 1-1 draw at home, Celta took advantage of the numerical advantage to win 2-0 in France thanks to goals from Javi Rueda and Ferran Jutgla.
Coach Claudio Giraldez's team traveled to Germany with high spirits after a 3-2 comeback victory over Valencia, thereby rising to sixth place in La Liga and only one point behind the top 5.
In the context of aiming to reach the Europa League semi-finals for the first time in 9 years, Celta aims to achieve favorable results in the first leg. However, the challenge will not be easy when they have lost two of their last three away matches in Germany in the European arena (1 draw).
Personnel situation
Freiburg continues to suffer losses when Max Rosenfelder is still absent due to injury. Besides, the possibility of Jordy Makengo and Patrick Osterhage playing is still uncertain after both did not participate in the most recent match against Bayern Munich.
Freiburg's medical team is also monitoring the condition of striker Lucas Holer, who showed signs of problems in the final minutes of last weekend's defeat.
In the opposite direction, Vincenzo Grifo and Igor Matanovic are likely to return to the starting lineup after only coming on as substitutes in the most recent match.
On Celta Vigo's side, Miguel Roman continues to be absent due to injury, while Javi Rueda is suspended due to receiving enough yellow cards.
In addition, the Spanish team also faces many doubts about the force when Carl Starfelt, Mihailo Ristic, Matias Vecino and captain Iago Aspas are not sure to be able to play.
Hugo Alvarez is also at risk of missing the away trip to Germany after having to leave the field early in the match against Valencia due to an ankle injury.
Expected lineup:
Atubolu, Treu, Ginter, Lienhart, Gunter, Eggestein, Manzambi, Beste, Suzuki, Grifo, Matanovic.
Celta Vigo: Radu, Rodriguez, Aidoo, Alonso, Mingueza, Sotelo, Moriba, Carreira, Lopez, Swedberg, Iglesias.
The match between Freiburg and Celta Vigo takes place at 2:00 AM on April 10 (Vietnam time).
