VfL Wolfsburg’s crucial home victory over fellow strugglers Bochum last weekend moved them up to 13th place in the table on 31 points – four clear of the relegation play-off position. Ralph Hasenhüttl’s side are not out of danger just yet but can take another step towards safety when they face SC Freiburg away at 15:30 CEST on Saturday 27 April. The hosts have not won any of their last six Bundesliga games at the Europa-Park-Stadion – a run stretching back to mid-January – but Christian Streich’s men have a good record against the Green-and-Whites on home soil: they are unbeaten in their last five encounters with the Wolves in front of their own fans (W3 D2), triumphing 3-2 and 2-0 on VfL’s last two visits.
Further facts and figures
- Dangerous from wide areas: Unlike Wolfsburg, Freiburg’s crosses from open play have caused their opponents problems this season.
- Perfect farewell: Freiburg beat VfL 2-0 at home on the penultimate weekend of the 2022/23 season, with Nils Petersen completing the scoring on his final Bundesliga appearance.
- Goals all but guaranteed: The last goalless draw between the teams was over 22 years ago – at Freiburg in February 2002.
- Four wins in five: Freiburg have triumphed in four of their last five encounters with Wolfsburg. Their only defeat in that time was a 6-0 reverse away from home in early 2023 – Streich’s heaviest Bundesliga loss.
- Kind run-in: The Breisgau club’s final four games are all against teams in the bottom half of the table (Wolfsburg at home, Köln away, Heidenheim at home and Union Berlin away).
- Oldest coaches: The Bundesliga’s two oldest tacticians go head to head this weekend. Streich is 58, two years older than opposite number Hasenhüttl.
- A long wait: The Wolves have not registered back-to-back league victories since winning the first two games of the current campaign.
- Wolves improving: VfL have won two of their four games under Hasenhüttl so far, having gone 11 matches without victory prior to his arrival.
- No home comforts: Freiburg are without a home win in six Bundesliga games – their worst run under Streich since 2013, when they went eight home games without victory.
