95 minutes of drama ensued before Freiburg were able to celebrate an incredible result. The club has reached the DFB Pokal final for the first time ever. As referee Deniz Aytekin blew for full-time, the Freiburg players and staff were sent sprinting towards the away end where they celebrated the result wildly with the fans. A breathtaking first half paved the way for Freiburg’s progression on Tuesday night.

"In the first half we won the ball back nicely a few times and that also led to a goal. In the second half it became difficult. In the end it was not an undeserved victory but Hamburg demanded absolutely everything from us,” enthused Christian Streich after the game. The boss was wet through having been given a shower by his players amid the celebrations at the final whistle.

One change for Streich’s side

Hamburg's Volksparkstadion was buzzing with that special atmosphere you only get for cup matches. You could really feel the anticipation from all sides of the city ahead of the semi-final clash. 6,000 of our own fans also made the journey up north to contribute to what was a fantastic atmosphere on the night.

Freiburg made one change from the 3-0 win over VfL Bochum: Lukas Kübler missed out through illness, handing a starting spot to Jonathan Schmid. Streich’s opposite number, Tim Walter – whose team had also triumphed 3-0 in the league last weekend – made two alterations. Sonny Kittel and Ludovit Reis started in place of Faride Alidou and Mikkel Kaufmann.

With the sun setting over a packed stadium, the match was rapid and hard-fought from the off. Philipp Lienhart had the first chance of the game after just two minutes as he headed a corner narrowly over the bar. The hosts’ first opportunity was also a header, this time for Robert Glatzel who couldn't find the target (5’).

Freiburg found a foothold in the game with an organised display, though Hamburg pressed hard early on to win the ball back on multiple occasions. The hosts looked to transition quickly using their pace on the wings.

Petersen nets first, then Höfler

The travelling fans were soon able to celebrate the opening goal of the game. Nils Petersen found the net once again, as he has done so often for SC Freiburg over the years. The home defence struggled to clear from a corner, and Nicolas Höfler fired a sizzling ball back into the middle. Freiburg’s master goalgetter was lurking in the middle to head home after goalkeeper Daniel Heuer Fernandes’ save ended up looping back into the middle (11’).

It was an early blow that visibly took the stuffing out of the Bundesliga 2 team and paved the way for a second goal in quick succession. Hamburg gave it away on the edge of their own area and Nicolas Höfler, outstanding on the night, let fly. His deflected effort found a way past the ‘keeper and into the back of the net. There was no chance for Heuer Fernandes in net and with that the Breisgauer led 2-0 after just 17 minutes.

If the first goal had put Hamburg on the back foot, the second seemed to have the opposite effect. Mark Flekken had to be at his best to keep out Anssi Suhonen’s effort (26’) and two minutes later Freiburg were lucky that there were no takers for Bakery Jatta’s wicked cross.

Grifo stretches the lead from the spot

A breathless first half refused to relent and VAR intervened after 34 minutes to award Freiburg a penalty. After an unfortunate deflection off a Hamburg defender, Moritz Heyer had accidentally kicked Nico Schlotterbeck in the back of the head as the Freiburg man sat on the floor. Vincenzo Grifo stepped up to take the resulting spot-kick and the Italian remained cool to smash it home just below the bar. The 3-0 scoreline reflected a clinical Freiburg performance so far (35’).

Just three minutes later there was a scare for Mark Flekken at the other end. Anssi Suhonen beat the Freiburg goalie one-on-one, but the attacker was offside in the build-up and saw his celebrations cut short. With that, the sides headed back to the dressing rooms with Freiburg three goals to the good at half-time. The Breisgauer deserved to be ahead though the scoreline was somewhat harsh on the hosts.

Ferocious pace continues

The second half got off to a frantic start. Just three minutes in Wooyeong Jeong, played in nicely by Vincenzo Grifo, looked to find Nils Petersen in the middle. The last defender, Ludovit Reis, stopped the ball with his hand and received only a yellow card despite protests from those in the black shirts of Freiburg.

Despite the three-goal deficit, Hamburg never gave up and had a great chance to bring one back through Bakery Jatta (50’). At the other end they were lucky  to see Roland Sallai hit the side-netting with a strong effort (53’). Nils Petersen’s lob also landed right in the arms of the ‘keeper Daniel Heuer Fernandes.

The 57,000 people inside the Volksparkstadion ensured that the tempo never dipped in the second 45 of a raucous affair. The goalmouth action dried up, however, with Freiburg forced to sit ever deeper as they looked to take the sting out of the hosts’ attacks.

A nervy end to the evening

There was one more obstacle to overcome en route to the final. The game was almost up when Hamburg notched to make things a little nervy. Robert Glatzel cut the deficit with a header (88’) meaning that those in black had to concentrate throughout the five minutes of added time.

Yet Freiburg diligently saw out the final few minutes and were able to bask in the glory as they celebrated in front of their ecstatic away support. SC Freiburg’s first ever cup final will take place on May 21st in Berlin. We will face the winner of Wednesday’s semi-final, either RB Leipzig or Union Berlin.

Photo: Achim Keller