Red Bull Leipzig 1-1 SC Freiburg
High flying Leipzig could only settle for a draw against Freiburg at the Red Bull Arena today after dominating the match from start to finish.
Bundesliga; Red Bull Leipzig vs SC Freiburg was a cracking fixture to return to football with, and there was no lack of entertainment for television fans as the hosts chased the game after falling behind to a shock Manuel Gulde goal late in the first half.
Die Roten Bullen roared back and eventually drew level when captain Yussuf Poulsen headed home, but they couldn’t find a winner and had VAR to thank when a late Freiburg goal was ruled out.
The draw left Leipzig in third place in the Bundesliga table, and with Borussia Dortmund hammering Schalke 4-0, Freiburg moved up to seventh.
Highlights of the game
Freiburg keeper Alexander Schwolow knew he was in for a busy afternoon when Red Bull flew out of the blocks quickly, Konrad Laimer coming very close in the second minute with an effort from just outside the penalty area. And the hosts’ French midfielder Christopher Nkunku, who has been in outstanding form this season, had a long-range effort heading towards the bottom right corner but Schwolow got down well to save.
Leipzig top scorer Timo Werner then tested the Freiburg stopper and wing back Laimer had another effort saved. When Marcus Halstenberg headed on a corner Tyler Adams came so close to putting Red Bull ahead but his shot flew narrowly wide.
But then after piling on the pressure for half an hour die Roten Bullen were hit by a sucker punch. Highly regarded defender Dayot Upamecano was absent from the hosts’ rearguard, having picked up a fifth yellow card in the last game before the break, and there was an alarming hole in Red Bull’s defence when Vincenzo Grifo swung over a corner and Gulde pounced to poke the ball home.
Leipzig fought back and Nkunku had a shot blocked, but then, just before the break Freiburg almost doubled their lead when Jonathan Schmid’s pile driver flew just past the top left corner.
Red Bull coach Julien Nagelsmann reacted at the break by bringing on striker Ademola Lookman to replace Nordi Mukiele, and the former Everton man was in the thick of the action early in the second half. First, he teed up Poulsen but his right foot shot was narrowly wide, then Lookman came close, arrowing a shot just past the same post.
Schwolow was on hand again to keep out an effort from Nkunku, and then, as Red Bull upped the tempo Kevin Kampl had a shot blocked. Skipper Poulsen met a cross from Werner but his header was off target, then he fired on over after receiving a clever ball from Nkunku.
Lookman came close again after Poulsen put him in and then, finally, on 77 minutes, Red Bull broke through. Kampl fired a cross into the danger area and Poulsen rose to plant a firm header into the bottom left corner.
Die Roten Bullen probed for a winner, but then came the VAR drama we have missed so much! Lucas Holer met a ball which was launched into the Red Bull penalty area and he flicked a header on for Robin Koch to fire home from point-blank range. Freiburg celebrated, but then Leipzig breathed a sigh of relief when the goal was ruled offside.
Key statistics
In the first half Red Bull dominated possession and won the shot count by eight to two, with three to one on target. And the second half was totally one-way traffic as the hosts finished with 67 per cent possession, 23 shots to six and eight to one on target.
The underdogs have a pretty impressive record in the head to head Red Bull vs DC Freiburg results, losing only four of ten meetings, and this was a particularly impressive result as they have struggled badly on the road, with just one win from 11.
What’s next?
At pre-match Red Bull vs SC Freiburg betting odds of 5.00, a draw was a long shot and, of course, a better result for the visitors.
There’s another huge game at the top of the Bundesliga tomorrow when Union Berlin host FC Bayern and a win for the league leaders would leave Red Bull seven points off the pace.
But, here at SBOBET, we’ll be previewing the next round of Bundesliga fixtures next week and Red Bull have a chance to get their challenge back on track with a trip to struggling Mainz
Meanwhile, SC Freiburg can strengthen their Europa League ambitions in a home match against relegation-threatened Werder Bremen.
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