Will the Sport-Club defend its top-eight spot?

With three matchdays remaining in the Europa League group stage, SC Freiburg has put itself in a promising position. The Breisgau-based club is one of three teams still unbeaten and has picked up eleven of a possible 15 points. It currently sits in fourth place, which would mean direct qualification for the round of 16 at the end of January.

Ideally, however, they want to secure their ticket to the round of 16 in the next two home games against RBS and Maccabi Tel Aviv. Ahead of Freiburg’s home game against Red Bull Salzburg on Thursday evening at 9:00 p.m., a home win is definitely the most likely choice on the three-way market.

The positive Freiburg vs. Red Bull Salzburg prediction for Schuster’s team is supported by the fact that SCF has won all of its last seven home games in Europe’s second most important club competition. This season, they have beaten Utrecht (2-0) and FC Basel (2-1). Across all competitions, the southern Germans are even unbeaten in eight home games. They have recorded six wins and two draws since the end of August.

I therefore recommend betting on a home win again ahead of the match between Freiburg and Red Bull Salzburg. Since four of the six recent home wins mentioned above were by a margin of at least two goals, betting on the handicap is also an alternative. The Bet365 app even offers Asian handicaps.

Meanwhile, the visitors from Austria are contributing to the home side’s clear favoritism. Coach Thomas Letsch’s team has only three meager points to its name, losing four of its five Europa League matches and, currently in 29th place in the table, needs a near-perfect finish to make it to the playoffs.

The former national league leaders, who had to congratulate Sturm Graz on winning the ÖBL title twice after ten consecutive championships, have paid dearly for their mistakes so far and, with ten goals conceded, also have one of the most vulnerable defenses of all 36 participating teams. Two weeks ago, RBS went down 1-4 in Bologna, and the other away game in Lyon was also lost by two goals (0-2).

Although the young Red Bulls team should not be underestimated, I think it would be a surprise if they were to pull off a coup in the form of a point against a very experienced home team. The bookmakers share this view and are offering odds of only 1.44 on a home win ahead of the match between Freiburg and RB Salzburg.

Freiburg – Red Bull Salzburg Head-to-head record

SC Freiburg has never played against an Austrian club in its European history. This will therefore be a real first for the Black Forest team. The situation is different for Red Bull Salzburg. The Wals-Siezenheim-based club has traveled to Germany five times to play in European cup matches. RBS has always returned empty-handed. The five defeats were accompanied by only four goals scored and 21 conceded. Their last away game in Germany was a 4-0 defeat to Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League in November 2024.

Freiburg – Red Bull Salzburg Tip

In the Bundesliga, SC Freiburg has so far fallen short of its own expectations. However, when Schuster’s team has scored, it has been almost exclusively in front of its home crowd. 69% of all points and 65% of all goals scored at the national level have come in home games.

In the Europa League, however, the Sport-Club has even won seven EL home games in a row. In the current EL league phase, both matches in front of their own fans were also won. RBS, on the other hand, lost both away games by two or more goals.

I expect that the young RBS team, which leads the table in Austria but has only managed to collect 29 points from 16 games so far, will once again have to learn the hard way. Letsch’s team has collected only three points in five match days, winning just two of its last six competitive games and, in addition, has consistently been shown its limits in its five international away games in Germany.

My Freiburg vs. RB Salzburg tip is therefore for a home win including an Asian handicap (-1.25). If the favorites win by two or more goals, Bet365’s 1.86 odds will pay off in full. My stake is five units.