Bundesliga: Freiburg Back to Square One Against Bremen

SC Freiburg vs Werder Bremen

High-flying Freiburg’s fantastic unbeaten run came to a crashing end as they were smashed 5-0 by Bayern Munich last time out.

It was a sobering reality check for Freiburg, who entered the match in second place in the Bundesliga, one spot above Bayern.

Christian Streich’s side must now pick themselves up and start again when they host Werder Bremen on the weekend.

Newly promoted Bremen are doing well as they are currently in midtable, although the Bundesliga 2022 betting odds will be against them despite their impressive away form.

Talking Points

Freiburg look to bounce back from Bayern blowout

Freiburg found themselves on the wrong end of a 5-0 thrashing at the hands of Bayern Munich last week. Despite being in fine form ahead of the match, Christian Streich’s side were completely outclassed by the German champions, who simply had too much.

That defeat put an end to Freiburg’s seven-match unbeaten run in the Bundesliga and 11 matches in all competitions.

Freiburg’s defence is nowhere near as bad as Bayern made them out to be, though. In fact, Freiburg were tied with Bayern for the second-best defensive record in the Bundesliga with just eight goals conceded prior to the match.

Although, the Freiburg attack is once again showing its faults. They have now scored just four goals in their last five Bundesliga games, with top scorer Michael Gregoritsch getting just one goal during that time.

Lucas Holer, who was the club’s second-leading scorer last season with 7 league goals, is still slowly working his way back from a broken foot, and Streich does not have too many other options at striker.

Freiburg are finding it particularly hard to score goals at home this season. They have scored just four times in four home games, the third-fewest total in the Bundesliga. Although, they have also conceded just four goals, which is tied for the third-best home defensive record.

Newly promoted Werder in a decent position

Werder Bremen are back in the Bundesliga after a year away, and at the moment, they are in a decent position to stay in the German top flight.

Bremen currently find themselves in ninth place, in between supposed top clubs Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig.

Werder’s early success is being fuelled by their prolific striker, Niclas Fullkrug. The 29-year-old, who banged in 19 goals in their promotion campaign last season, leads the Bundesliga with eight goals and has also contributed two assists.

With Fullkrug leading the way, Werder are the third-leading scorers in the Bundesliga with 20 goals in 10 games. Although, Fullkrug and Werder were shut out by Mainz, who went into the Weserstadion and won 2-0.

Bremen have a surprisingly poor home record, with just one win from their first five games. They have been more successful away from home with 3 wins and 2 draws; in fact, they are the only remaining Bundesliga team unbeaten on the road.

Midfielder Leonardo Bittencourt missed the Mainz match due to illness, but he might be fully recovered in time to face Freiburg.

Meanwhile, it remains to be seen whether Marvin Ducksch will take part in the match. The forward, who has started all 10 matches to date and provided his fair share of Bundesliga 2022 highlights with two goals and three assists, was dropped for their midweek DFB-Pokal match against SC Paderborn due to a disciplinary issue.

History

Werder Bremen have had the upper hand over Freiburg in recent years. Over their last 22 league meetings, Bremen have a 10-4 edge in wins, with eight draws.

Bremen are unbeaten in their last six matches against Freiburg, with two wins and three draws. They drew both matches in the 2020-21 season.

Freiburg’s last win over Werder came in 2018. That is their only victory in nine games against Bremen.

Betting Tip

SBOTOP odds have Freiburg installed as 1.94 favourites at home, with Werder priced at 3.50. A draw is 3.75.

After getting shredded by Bayern, look for Freiburg to go back to basics against Bremen, which means shoring up their solid defence.

As their loss to Mainz showed, Werder’s attack has its limits despite Fullkrug’s fine form, and they could very well find Freiburg’s backline similarly tough to crack.

 

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