The last three league matches haven’t gone to plan for Freiburg. Despite promising performances against Bayern, Eintracht Frankfurt and VfL Bochum, SCF were handed three successive defeats. “For the team and for all of us, it was a very disappointing defeat because we did well to implement what we wanted to see from the team,” Christian Streich said about the 2-1 loss to Bochum. “Now, we’re focused on Gladbach. We are highly motivated and have trained well.”

Streich’s side are still in the top third of the table, thanks to their strong start to the campaign. However, Streich is not content to let his side get complacent. “We saw the mistakes we made and were tough, but fair, with our criticism. Now, it’s about picking ourselves up and focusing on preparing well for Mönchengladbach,” he said.

Freiburg can expect to face a tough opponent in Borussia, one that also goes into the game on the back of a tough defeat. The Foals lost 4-1 against rivals Köln, letting countless chances go to waste and being punished instantly on the counter. “They will want to make good on this defeat,” said Streich.

Although Freiburg’s overall record in Gladbach could use some work, they can draw confidence from their recent performances at Borussia-Park. A total of 15,000 fans will be permitted to attend the match. SCF put on their best performance of the season in a 2-1 defeat in April, creating several chances in the first half. “Even if Gladbach have a different style of play now than they did last season, we can still draw confidence from the fact that we played extremely well against them last time,” said Streich.

Nils Petersen has returned to the squad in time for Sunday’s fixture after recovering from injury. Jonathan Schmid will once again not be part of the squad.

Photo: Bernd Thissen