Will SC Freiburg’s offense falter again?
The Breisgau side suffered a 0-1 defeat against the Belgians in the first leg of the Europa League round of 16 last week. Now the second leg is coming up in front of their home crowd, and we have an SC Freiburg vs. Genk tip ready! The hosts from the Black Forest will be relying primarily on their home advantage against the Limburgers.
In the Bundesliga, they have earned 25 of their 34 points this season at home, and their home form was also the key to success in the group stage of the Europa League. Coach Julian Schuster’s team won all four matches on their home turf during this stage of the competition, and three of those victories came without conceding a goal.
However, last Sunday saw the end of their unbeaten home streak—which dated back to August of last year—with a loss to Union Berlin in the dress rehearsal for the match against the “Smurfs.”
The match demonstrated once again that the hosts are currently lacking conviction from an offensive standpoint. In three of their last four competitive matches, SC failed to score a single goal. Against this backdrop, the prediction of a maximum of one goal for the Bundesliga side in the upcoming clash between Freiburg and Genk looks promising.
Furthermore, given SC’s continued defensive strength in home games, we also expect no more than two goals in the match. On top of that, the visitors are fielding a weakened squad for the second leg.
Zakaria El Ouahdi, the scorer from the first leg, will have to sit out due to a suspension. For the visitors, this is a double blow, as the 24-year-old is not only missing in defense but has also been a reliable scorer recently, netting five goals in his last seven competitive matches!
Freiburg – Genk Head-to-Head Record
The first leg of the Round of 16, which ended in a 1-0 victory for the Limburgers, marked the first-ever meeting between these two sides. For the upcoming match at the Europa-Park Stadium between Freiburg and Genk, however, the odds now point toward a home win.
Freiburg – Genk Prediction
Freiburg is currently juggling three competitions: the DFB-Pokal, the Bundesliga, and the Europa League. This appears to be overwhelming the SC squad. The Breisgau side has gone four competitive matches without a win, losing three of those games.
The first leg against the Belgians also ended in a loss, and the hosts failed to score a single goal in that match. That last point highlights Freiburg’s biggest problem in recent weeks: the Black Forest side’s own offense has been largely ineffective.
In three of their last four matches on the national and international stage, Schuster’s side failed to score. With KRC, they now face an opponent that has recently been strong defensively.
Looking back at their last four competitive matches, the Jupiler League side conceded just two goals—both against Royal Union SG, the current leader of the Belgian top flight. Given this situation, betting odds suggesting the home team will score no more than one goal are recommended for the match between Freiburg and Genk.
