With the second half of the Bundesliga season soon upon us, we at doublefault.org felt we'd try to get the biggest SC Freiburg fan in the DFO, as well as what could quite possibly be all of northern California, to give us his take on the season so far as well as expectations for the second half.
DFO: So, some background. You're known among the group as having some extremely varied and diverse rooting interests - New Orleans Saints in the NFL, the Nationals in MLB, the Blues in the NHL, etc. What explains your almost perverse attempt to root for the most random of teams? And how does SC Freiburg fit into all this?
Auz: I pick/root for teams that:
A) Have an almost unhealthy loyal fan base.
B) To the casual fan knowledge, don’t buy their success in free agency/the transfer market.
C) Develop players for the most part instead of bringing in players.
DFO: You've been a fan of SC Freiburg relatively briefly, the past three seasons, but those have been some pretty good seasons for the club. As to last season, sum up the year in a single word.
Auz: Reassuring.
DFO: Elaborate.
Auz: I came into last year's campaign thinking that Freiburg had a decent team. Coach Streich had a good strategy. Some experts seemed to doubt Freiburg and their ability to stay in the top tier last year and even again this year. To see Freiburg grab points in games where others write them off is reassuring to me ... reassuring that Freiburg is a good club. When people take notice they also conclude that as well.
DFO: How do you feel the team prepared, during the summer, for the upcoming Bundesliga season?
Auz: In preparation for this season Freiburg seemed to stay the course. Freiburg had some players such as Waldschmidt who they felt were on the verge. With the dedication and loyalty of Petersen to the club, it seemed to allowed them to be patient and to not try to [make a big] splash in the transfer market, even though a puddle splash is pretty much all they could afford.
DFO: First six matches, relatively light schedule (Mainz, Paderborn, Koln, Hoffenheim, Augsburg, and Dusseldorf) but a great start with 13 out of 18 possible points. Just a great start. Thoughts?
Auz: The great start was a pleasant surprise even though when combing over the schedule, there were some early games in which three points seemed getable, the fact that Freiburg accumulated as many points as they did was amazing. So amazing that even as a fan, I was waiting for the team to slip up against the likes of Düsseldorf. 13 points after Match day 6 was unexpected. The loss to Köln seemed like Freiburg showing their true colors, but then shutting out Hoffenheim and sharing points with Augsburg, well, Freiburg seemed somewhat legit. Then there was a point when I started getting nervous... "Is Freiburg REALLY good enough to make Eure League? Champions League?? It didn’t feel right. Almost unnatural. Felt Freiburg would be good, but THIS good?
DFO: Then nine of 18 possible points followed.
Auz: The next 6 felt like a more sustainable and realistic representation of what the season as a whole could be. A win here, a surprising point there, an expected loss. The push against Dortmund was a team confirming effort. People seemed to take notice, but still were waiting for the rug to be pulled from underneath them. And it seemed like it had when Freiburg lost to Union Berlin the next week. But then Freiburg bettered Leipzig 2-1 the next week and no one knew who Freiburg really was. Losing to Hennes and UB, but pushing against BVB and besting Leipzig, this season as a whole so far was a visual and emotional roller coaster.
DFO: What was more impressive - the lossless November or the red card against Frankfurt for the "violent conduct" against Streich?
Auz: A lossless month is always impressive, but Streich’s ability to flop at a moment's notice as if he were still on the pitch playing was amazing. To also have the other team carded for it just solidifies the thought that Christian could give up his coaching jeans and hit the pitch.
DFO: Then December was a bit brutal with only 4 of 15 possible points, the win coming versus Wolfsburg. The schedule, though, was rough. 4/15 ... fair or ...?
Auz: 4/15 seemed fair due to injuries and schedule. You could see it coming after ending November with a 4-2 loss to G’bach, even after the pushing of Leverkusen the week prior gave me false hopes of Champions League matches in the new stadium next year. Taking 3 from Wolfsburg was a pleasant surprise and was much needed as they both are still in the Euro League conversation as of late. Bayern may be having a “down” year in some people’s opinion, but not when Freiburg walks out of the tunnel. Although tied into injury time, Freiburg let Bayern do to them what Freiburg had been excelling at this year: scoring in extra time. And because Freiburg is the most gracious of hosts, they allowed them to do it twice. Then the push against Schalke to end the 2019 year was the appropriate way to head into the winter break.
DFO: So is this a top six, mid six, or bottom six team?
Auz: I want to say Freiburg is mid six but they will probably end up around 11th or 12th this year. With the injuries Freiburg is dealing with its hard to see them being top six, but then again I didn’t see them being at 8th sitting two points out of Euro League consideration and just four points out of a Champions League spot at the break. So hell, let’s go with a prediction of 4th and with a Champions League bid in the works!
DFO: So, some hinderunde reviews. Team MVP?
Auz: Although Petersen leads in goals (7) and Gunter leads in assists (6), my MVP is Jonathan Schmid. Because you can’t spell mid six finish without Schmid...kinda. Also, his ability as a set piece shot taker so far has grasped 3 points away from sure draws, like the 85’ free kick goal in Freiburg’s 1-0 win vs. Wolfsburg. The timeliness of his scoring plus his defensive approach has brought a steadiness to the club that some thought would be lost by the departure of Söyüncü.
DFO: Most surprising player, good or bad?
Auz: The most surprising player could easily be Waldschmidt, but he is playing the way most Freiburg fans thought he’d play at the end of last year. My most surprising player so far is Mark Flekken. Most teams hope to stay afloat when their 1st team goalie go down due to injury as Schwolow did this year. Flekken has only allowed 14 goals in the 9 games he’s tended. That includes three to Bayern and four to G’bach. So a goal a game average in the other sevcen which includes a 2-1 win vs. Leipzig and shutouts vs. Wolfsburg and Frankfurt.
DFO: Player who needs to step up his game?
Auz: IMO, the player who needs to step up is Haberer. In 14 games (13 starts) he has managed only 1 shot on goal, 1 goal and 2 assists. The expectations coming into this season were much greater than he has displayed so far.
DFO: Thoughts for the ruckrunde?
Auz: As for the rückrunde, keep steady and maintain. Get three where they are available. Don’t have let downs versus the bottom six teams in the relegation fight knowing that they may come with more of a purpose due to their woolly situation.
DFO: Finish this sentence - "Freiburg will qualify to Euro League if..."
Auz: "they take the points they should and surprise a few on the way."
DFO: Finish this sentence - "Freiburg will finish 10-16th if..."
Auz: "they do what they did in the 1st half." Also, if Schwolow comes back and isn’t as sharp as Freiburg hopes, Freiburg could again drop points to the likes of Köln and possibly Paderborn....maybe. Now that Freiburg should be taken somewhat more seriously, pulling out a few surprise wins won’t be as easy.
DFO: Finish this sentence - "If Freiburg plays VfB, Travis' club, in the playoffs ..."
Auz: "something terribly wrong has gone wrong for Freiburg." So if that happens, I would expect Freiburg to continue their apparent free fall into B2.
DFO: Okay, let's wrap this up with a prediction for the season.
Auz: As stated before, 11th or 12th would be my answer. A top 10 would be fantastic! I don’t see Freiburg finishing lower than 14th. Although it’d be a comfortable 14th. I’d be shocked to see them fighting to stay up.
That concludes our interview with the biggest SC Freiburg supporter in the entire Mendocino Country area. Be sure to check back for his thoughts in the coming days as his beloved club travels to FSV Mainz this weekend and be on the lookout for his blog posts on his other varied interests - the Saints, Nationals, Blues, Empoli FC, rec league basketball, the pro's and con's of driving a van for a living versus washing a van for a living, and how much he has been mentally and emotionally crushed by the Saints last three playoff seasons.
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