Christian Günter has held the captaincy at SC Freiburg for six years now; this season, however, he is rarely the first-choice in Julian Schuster’s team. Last Sunday, in the sandwich game between the two Europa League semifinals, Günter started again in the starting XI. And after the 1-1 draw with Wolfsburg, the 33-year-old did what a captain is for: he praised Freiburg’s repeatedly celebrated ability to come back from behind — and urged himself and his teammates to muster the courage for the decisive duel with Sporting Braga.
“I am now totally optimistic for Thursday,” Günter assured before the most important match in the club’s history. Against the relegation-threatened Wolfsburg, the Sport-Club needed 20 minutes to secure an even result. In the first leg of the semifinal in Braga, the equalizer arrived after only eight minutes. In stoppage time, however, the visitors, who had been largely solid up to then, revealed a defensive flaw — which the North Portuguese immediately used for the 2-1 winner.
The scenes that followed at the Estádio Municipal de Braga were etched very deeply in the eyes of onlooker Igor Matanovič. To channel his anger for the showdown with the fourth force in Portuguese football. “I looked up at the stands there. The Braga fans across from us were already very arrogant and celebrated provocatively,” Freiburg’s centre-forward grimly recalls. Therefore he was already “very hot” on the spot for the rematch in the home environment and credibly assured: “I’m really looking forward to the return leg.”
Da waren die Fans von Braga uns gegenüber schon sehr hochmütig und haben provokant gejubelt
Igor Matanovič
Zuversichtlich, am 20. Mai in Istanbul ihr erstes internationales Finale zu bestreiten, stimmt die Südbadener vor allem ihre gewachsene Dominanz auf eigenem Terrain: Die saisonübergreifend letzten zehn Heimspiele in der Europa League hat Freiburg allesamt gewonnen.
Upswing after the Winter Break
Coupled with the extensively tested resilience, the increasingly passionate support, and a squad broader than last season, these are some trump cards that speak for Freiburg’s third German final participation in the Europa League over the last five seasons. In the wake of Frankfurt (winner in 2022) and Leverkusen (finalist in 2024), SC coach Schuster, after the experiences of the first duel with Braga, also looks quite realistically at the matchup: “We’re facing a game where anything can happen, a game that can swing in either direction.”
In Freiburg’s favor, Igor Matanovič can definitely move a lot of things. While difference-makers like Johan Manzambi and Yuito Suzuki (for the Japanese player, the season ended after a clavicle fracture suffered against Wolfsburg) have recently shown some dip in form, the summer signing from Frankfurt has remained one of the team’s most reliable performers.
Especially after the winter break, Matanovič (23) found himself settling into the new surroundings more and more. In the attacking center, the Hamburg-born forward has generally been preferred over Lucas Höler. In the league, he is Freiburg’s top scorer with eight goals. In the knockout matches against Genk and Vigo, he scored twice, including the dream goal for the important lead in the second leg against Celta.
Together with the very mobile technicians Manzambi and Suzuki, Matanovič, at 1.95 meters tall and a secure target man, has clearly energized Freiburg’s offense this season. “He puts in an incredibly large effort — and that helps us in all the areas that are important for our game,” praises Schuster of the Croatian national striker.
Matanovič’s parents are Croatian war refugees from the former Yugoslavia. As a teenager he initially played for the Croatian U14, then for German youth national teams, including with Florian Wirtz — and at 19 he switched back to the Croatian federation.
Further south he went on the club level as well: after 13 years at St. Pauli, he moved to Frankfurt in 2023. Eintracht immediately loaned him to Karlsruhe, followed by a season in the banking metropolis — and ten months ago the move to Breisgau. The busy Freiburgers now face their 51st competitive match of the season there. Meanwhile, Igor Matanovič already warns Braga and its cheeky fans: “One goal for us — and it can become very uncomfortable in our stadium.”
