Freiburg vs Wolfsburg verdict, predicted score, stats and suggested bets
- George Dempsey
- 18 May 2023
The Bundesliga battle for European football rages on this Friday when Freiburg face Wolfsburg at Europa-Park Stadion.
A win for hosts Freiburg would send them level on points with fourth-placed Union Berlin, while sixth-placed Wolfsburg could close the gap to their hosts and pull clear of seventh-placed Bayer Leverkusen.
Date, KO time and TV coverage
Bundesliga, Friday May 19, Kick-off 7:30pm, live on Sky Sports Arena
Predicted score
Suggested bets
Freiburg to win
Over 2.5 goals
Both teams to score
Key stats
Freiburg have averaged 1.6 goals per game at home this season.
Only the top three sides have won at Europa-Park Stadion this season.
Wolfsburg have won more games on their travels than they have at home, but did beat Freiburg 6-0 earlier in the season.
Wolfsburg have averaged 1.43 goals per game away from home this season.
Verdict
Things are getting tight at the top. In one of the most competitive Bundesliga seasons we've seen, eight teams are still in with a realistic chance of securing European football.
Two of those teams are Freiburg and Wolfsburg. The hosts hold a seven-point advantage over the visitors and so are mathematically guaranteed at least a top-five finish.
Wolfsburg are locked level on points with Bayer Leverkusen (49), while Eintracht Frankfurt (46) and Mainz (45) can still finish in the top six, although it's likely that both will need to pick up six points.
Unfortunately for Niko Kovac's men, Freiburg can still secure Champions League football, so they won't be taking their foot off the gas. The hosts have lost their last three matches though.
Wolfsburg have won more games away from home (seven) than they have at the Volkswagen Arena (six), but their most recent outing was a 6-0 thrashing at the hands of Borussia Dortmund.
It's a lopsided scoreline that seems to keep popping up in this year's Bundesliga, with Wolfsburg winning the reverse of this fixture 6-0 in January.
That might just be an added incentive for Freiburg to deliver what could be a fatal blow to Die Wolfe's chances of European football. Only Bayern Munich, Dortmund and RB Leipzig have won in Freiburg this season.
Dortmund are the only side to have scored more than once against Mark Flekken on home soil. The Dutch stopper has been an ever-present in the Freiburg goal and has kept a league-high 12 clean sheets.
That tally is matched by Koen Casteels in the Wolfsburg goal, but a majority of his clean sheets have also come at home. On the road, he's been beaten 21 times, with all but one of their away clean sheets coming against sides ninth or lower.
Despite their defensive records, this is a crucial game and there comes a time when at least one of these sides can't afford to settle. We may have to be patient, but the game should open up and produce goals at some stage.
