Freiburg bring a commanding two-goal cushion back to the Schwarzwald-Stadion after dismantling Motherwell 3-1 in the first leg, allowing Julian Schuster to rotate heavily with six regular starters rested. Motherwell themselves make seven changes, effectively conceding the tie and…
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Sign inSC Freiburg welcome Motherwell for the second leg of their UEFA Europa Conference League playoff tie on Thursday, 27 August. Julian Schuster’s side carry a 3-1 advantage from the first leg at Fir Park, where Matthias Ginter’s double and a red card for Motherwell’s Martin Moormann tilted the contest firmly in the Bundesliga club’s favour.
Freiburg reached last season’s Europa League final and began this campaign by beating Conference League holders Crystal Palace 3-0 in a pre-season friendly. Their 3-1 win in Scotland, secured despite Motherwell taking an early lead through Regan Charles-Cook, leaves them in control. Motherwell must score at least twice to force extra time, a task made harder by suspensions and a growing injury list.
Alfred Johansson’s squad has been stretched further. Centre-back Moormann is suspended after his first-leg dismissal, while goalscorer Charles-Cook was withdrawn in the first half with a problem and is a doubt. Johnny Koutroumbis remains out with a muscular injury, joining Tom Sparrow (knock), Paul McGinn and Oscar Priestman on the sidelines. Stephen O’Donnell returned to the side in the first leg but is still building match fitness. New signing Seb Palmer-Houlden, who replaced Charles-Cook, could be in line for more minutes.
Freiburg left Lucas Höler at home for the first match for family reasons and were without Rouven Tarnutzer, Karl Steinmann and Rihito Yamamoto, but the squad otherwise reported no new issues. Vincenzo Grifo, the club captain and record scorer, recently extended his contract and remains the attacking fulcrum, while Mio Backhaus and Erik Engelhardt are expected to make competitive debuts.
Motherwell pressed high and scored first at Fir Park, but Johansson acknowledged the gulf in intensity. “That intensity and level of difficulty and level of actions which the players have done tonight, if you go and do what we did then that intensity and quality sticks in your nervous system,” he said after the defeat. He previously referenced last year’s Rosenborg tie against Mainz, where a 2-1 home win was followed by a 4-1 loss in Germany, as evidence that brave approaches can work—but that priorities sometimes need tweaking.
The winners over two legs advance to the league phase of the Conference League. For Motherwell, it would be a first group-stage appearance in European competition since the 2008-09 campaign. A free domestic weekend gives Johansson some recovery time, but the margin means even a spirited display may not be enough to overturn Freiburg’s comfortable cushion.
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