Matthias Ginter will return to SC Freiburg, the club where he once began his career. The 28-year-old centre-back will move from Borussia Mönchengladbach ahead of the 2022/23 season.
Ginter joined the Freiburg academy as an 11 year old and moved through the ranks of the club’s youth sides. He won the U19 DFB-Pokal with Freiburg in 2011 and 2012, before making his Bundesliga and professional debut for the club aged just 18. Ginter marked the occasion by scoring the winning goal in a 1-0 victory against Augsburg. The centre-back has made a total of 81 competitive appearances for SC to date.
Ginter moved to Borussia Dortmund in July 2014, where he made 102 appearances across the Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal, Champions League and Europa League. He won the DFB-Pokal with BVB in 2017, before moving to Borussia Mönchengladbach that same year. He has since made a total of 178 appearances across all competitions for the Foals.
Ginter became a full-fledged Germany international while at SC in 2014, and was the youngest member of the World Cup-winning squad in Brazil. He has won 46 caps for Die Mannschaft so far. Together with Nils Petersen, Ginter also won a silver medal at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.
“We never lost touch with Matze and he always maintained a connection to his home, both geographically and in a sporting sense,” said sporting director Klemens Hartenbach. “We are very aware of the qualities that Matze brings to the table, and will set healthy and realistic expectations together with him. Matze will be able to stabilise our backline and help us improve our build-up play with his skills as a footballer. Together with Matze, we want to tackle the challenges that next season will bring for us as a team and as a club.”
“I wanted to do something special in my career, and there’s nothing more meaningful to me than a return to SC and to my home,” said Ginter. “The development the club has undergone, as well as the potential in the team and the discussions with the club over the last weeks have been great. To find something like that in my hometown, especially nowadays, is extremely rare. It was just a perfect fit all round.”
Matthias Ginter will wear the number 28 shirt for SC Freiburg. The details of the contract negotiations will not be disclosed.
Photo: SC Freiburg
