Freiburg 2-0 Union Berlin: Second-half goals lift the hosts into third

Freiburg beat Union Berlin 2-0 to ensure they go into the international break in third place in the Bundesliga.

Julian Schuster's side took to the field at the Europa-Park Stadion knowing that Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund had both won, and that RB Leipzig had moved above them in the table. However, two second-half goals restored Freiburg to third place.

The opener came in the 55th minute with a slice of good fortune. Union goalkeeper Frederik Rönnow, who had kept the Freiburg attackers at bay in the first half, could do nothing to stop Rani Khedira from turning Niklas Beste's cross into his own net with an awkward touch.

Freiburg doubled their lead 12 minutes later. Derry Scherhant carried the ball through midfield before slipping a pass to Yuito Suzuki, who rounded Rönnow and finished neatly.

Rönnow saved a penalty from substitute Vincenzo Grifo, and the Union defence also cleared one effort off the line. Yet the visitors never looked capable of mounting a comeback.

Toothless Union Berlin pay a heavy price

While Freiburg remain in the title race just two points behind Bayern Munich and Dortmund, the outlook for Union Berlin is far from bright. The capital club, who have slipped towards the danger zone, have conceded 21 goals in their 9 Bundesliga matches this season. That marks the worst defensive start in the club's top-flight history. The only side in the league to have conceded more than Union is bottom club Borussia Mönchengladbach (25).

Offering nothing in attack, Union finished the match without a shot on target and attempted just four shots in total. Freiburg generated 2.28 expected goals (xG), while Union Berlin managed only 0.35.

With 19 points after nine matches, Freiburg have matched their performance from the 2021-22 season to equal the best Bundesliga start in the club's history. Scherhant, one of the driving forces of the home side, has been directly involved in 9 goals in 14 matches across all competitions this season, already surpassing his output for the whole of last season (7 goals and 1 assist in 49 matches). Suzuki, meanwhile, took his league tally for the season to five.