First Team

Defeat despite Pejcinovic hat-trick

There were five goals in the second half as the Wolves ended the year with a 4-3 defeat at home to SC Freiburg.

VfL Wolfsburg signed off for the winter break with a spectacular match at home to SC Freiburg, but they left the pitch empty handed after losing 4-3. Dzenan Pejcinovic scored a hat-trick for the Wolves but it was still not enough to take anything from a game that was an end-to-end encounter in the second half, with five goals scored after the restart.

Goals

  • 0-1 Treu (5’): Yuito Suzuki cuts in from the left along the edge of the penalty area and dinks a pass towards Lucas Höler. It takes a deflection off Lovro Majer and the ball sits up perfectly for Philipp Treu, who smashes an unstoppable first-time volley into the top-right corner from a central position.

     
  • 1-1 Pejcinovic (13’): The Wolves hit back! Patrick Wimmer wins the ball off Treu on the halfway line and quickly bursts forward. The Austrian slides a pass into the path of Pejcinovic on the left-hand side of the penalty area and the VfL striker somehow hammers in the equaliser from the tightest of angles for his first-ever Bundesliga goal in his 18th outing. Congratulations, Dzenan!

     
  • 2-1 Pejcinovic (49’): VfL take the lead and Pejcinovic gets a brace! Goalkeeper Noah Atubolu tries to play a no-look pass inside his own penalty area but plays it straight to the feet of Pejcinovic. The striker controls it, sends the goalkeeper sliding off in the wrong direction and then slots into the empty net. 

     
  • 2-2 Grifo (pen. 56’): Referee Sascha Stegemann awards the visitors a penalty after a foul by Jenson Seelt inside the box. Vincenzo Grifo confidently converts it to equalise at 2-2. 

     
  • 3-2 Pejcinovic (69’): Unbelievable! What is happening here at the Volkswagen Arena? Atubolu hoofs the ball out of his area but Christian Eriksen heads it straight back towards the box. Wimmer, who is only just onside, flicks it on with his head to Pejcinovic, who completes his hat-trick and puts the Wolves 3-2 up! 

     
  • 3-3 Seelt (o.g. 71’): Matthias Ginter’s header is saved by Kamil Grabara, but the ball then bounces off Seelt and over the line.

     
  • 3-4 Scherhant (78’): Freiburg turn the game on its head. Johan Manzambi gets into the VfL box and slides the ball to his right to Derry Scherhant, who lashes it in at the near post.

Line-ups and stats 


VfL Wolfsburg: Grabara – Kumbedi (88‘ Bürger), Seelt, Koulierakis, Zehnter – Gerhardt, Arnold – Eriksen (80‘ Lindström), Majer (67‘ Svanberg), Wimmer (80‘ Daghim) – Pejcinovic

Subs: Pervan (GK), Fischer, Souza, Jenz, Hensel

SC Freiburg: Atubolu – Kübler, Ginter, Jung, Günter – Eggestein, Osterhage (46‘ Grifo) – Treu (67‘ Scherhant), Suzuki (90‘+1 Matanovic), Manzambi (79‘ Höfler) – Höler (79‘ Adamu)

Subs: Müller (GK), Makengo, Ogbus, Steinmann

Goals: 0-1 Treu (5‘), 1-1 Pejcinovic (13‘), 2-1 Pejcinovic (49‘), 2-2 Grifo (56‘/pen), 3-2 Pejcinovic (6‘.), 3-3 Seelt (71‘/own goal), 3-4 Scherhant (78‘)

Yellow cards: Arnold / Jung, Schuster

Referee: Sascha Stegemann (Niederkassel)

Attendance: 22,045 at Volkswagen Arena