Freiburg play their first competitive match in their new stadium on Saturday, when they host RB Leipzig in Bundesliga action at the Europa-Park Stadion.
The hosts remain the only unbeaten side left in the German top flight heading into this fixture, whilst the visitors will look to build on their back-to-back league victories prior to the break to continue their revival after a poor start to the new campaign.
Match preview
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After an emotional farewell to the Schwarzwald-Stadion at the end of September, Freiburg will be looking to begin their stay at their new home as well as they finished it at their previous one, when they welcome Leipzig on Saturday.
A 3-0 victory over Augsburg was the perfect send off for the 68-year-old stadium, but the result was just one of a number of impressive displays so far this season.
Sitting in fourth place in the table as it stands, Die Breisgauer are yet to taste to defeat after the opening seven matches, in what is their best-ever start to a Bundesliga campaign.
Manager Christian Streich has been through it all during his 10-year stay to date, but creating one of the toughest and most stubborn sides to break down in the division so far means his side can dream of a rare return to Europe should they continue to perform as well as they have done so far.
Conceding a joint-division-best five goals from their seven games so far means Freiburg remain competitive in every fixture, which allows them to build from a solid defensive structure at the back and frustrate their opponents each time they play.
Streich knows the same will be required against Leipzig on Saturday, and after already beating title hopefuls Borussia Dortmund on home soil earlier in the season, he and his side will remain confident of achieving a result against a side that they have run out victorious against in three of their last four meetings at home.
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Meanwhile, the fortunes of the visitors heading into this fixture have been far more inconsistent compared to their opponents on Saturday so far.
Manager Jesse Marsch will be disappointed that he has failed to build on the solid platform left behind by predecessor Julian Nagelsmann since arriving in the summer.
The American boss has overseen a mixed start that currently sees his side sitting in eighth place, which is a poor position for a club that was hoping to provide a strong push for the title yet again.
Despite a heavy defeat to reigning champions Bayern Munich at the Red Bull Arena, home form has not been the problem for Die Roten Bullen this campaign, with away trips currently being the significant area of concern instead.
Visits to Mainz 05, Wolfsburg and FC Koln have seen Leipzig pick up just the one point on the road, and just a single goal scored to show for their efforts during that time.
Marsch will be demanding an improved performance from his players in order to spoil the party for their hosts, and one similar to the displays that have blown away Stuttgart, Hertha Berlin and VfL Bochum on home soil.
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Team News
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Freiburg have just the one doubt ahead of Saturday's visit of Leipzig, with midfielder Jonathan Schmid still lacking in fitness since last featuring back in August.
There appears to be no other injury concerns for the hosts, so there is a possibility that Streich will name an unchanged starting lineup to the one that defeated Hertha 2-1 last time out before the break.
As for the visitors, they could be missing as many as seven players for the trip to Freiburg on Saturday.
Defenders Marcel Halstenberg and Marcelo Saracchi are yet to feature this campaign, and remain on the sidelines, along with forward Brian Brobbey.
Willi Orban and Kevin Kampl are doubts due to suffering from bouts of illness, whilst Dani Olmo and Nordi Mukiele are also doubtful for the trip due to thigh and ankle injuries respectively.
Freiburg possible starting lineup:
Flekken; Gulde, Lienhart, Schlotterbeck; Kubler, Eggestein, Hofler, Gunter; Jeong, Holer, Grifo
RB Leipzig possible starting lineup:
Gulacsi; Klostermann, Simakan, Gvardiol; Adams, Haidara, Kampl, Angelino; Nkunku, Forsberg; Silva
We say: Freiburg 2-1 RB Leipzig
We believe that the hosts will continue their fantastic start to the campaign against Leipzig on Saturday, with the buzz of the new stadium and the noisy atmosphere likely to play a part.
Freiburg will ensure they remain difficult to break down once more and we see them earning a narrow victory to inflict more away day misery on the visitors.
Top tip
Matthew Tranter
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a RB Leipzig win with a probability of 54.98%. A win for Freiburg had a probability of 22.74% and a draw had a probability of 22.3%.
The most likely scoreline for a RB Leipzig win was 1-2 with a probability of 9.83%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-1 (8.98%) and 0-2 (8.55%). The likeliest Freiburg win was 2-1 (5.93%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (10.32%). The actual scoreline of 1-1 was predicted with a 10.3% likelihood.
