Freiburg 2-0 Union Berlin Bundesliga matchday nine, Digi Mart USA News: Julian Schuster’s SC Freiburg responded to Bundesliga matchday nine victories from Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig with one of their own. The result secured Freiburg’s sixth Bundesliga win of the 2026/27 campaign and consolidated their top-four place as European football heads into the final international break of the 2026 calendar year.
Freiburg will spend the next weeks in third place in the Bundesliga table after defeating Union Berlin 2-0 at home. Schuster made four changes to the side that played in Thursday’s Conference League encounter in Trabzon.
Philipp Treu returned to the starting XI after his recent recall to the German national team, moving Lukas Kübler back to the bench.
In attack, Yuito Suzuki, Jan-Niklas Beste and Derry Scherhant replaced Cyriaqué Irié, Keisuke Goto and Vincenzo Grifo. Union Berlin coach Lustrinelli kept the same lineup that earned his team their third consecutive league draw against Köln the previous weekend.
The visitors had a full week of rest, which was evident early on as they pressed hard and disrupted Freiburg’s rhythm during the opening minutes.
Freiburg struggled with turnovers and misplaced passes in the early stages. Igor Matanovic headed on target in the ninth minute, a relatively soft effort that marked the hosts’ first attempt on goal.
Union continued to stand firm as the first quarter-hour passed, and although the hosts grew more comfortable in possession, Union ensured Freiburg never looked truly dangerous.
Scherhant worked his way into the box on several occasions and more crosses were sent toward Matanovic, but Freiburg lacked a genuine scoring chance. Set pieces in promising positions in the 19th and 24th minutes, along with a long throw in the 20th minute, failed to produce a threat.
Schuster’s side tried numerous attacking patterns without achieving a breakthrough.
The match featured sloppy play from both teams and descended into a prolonged lull as halftime approached. Freiburg’s passing sequences of ten or more passes were not enough to draw Union out of their zonal shape.
Apart from a Suzuki effort in the 37th minute and another Matanovic header in the 42nd minute, nothing seriously troubled Union goalkeeper Frederik Rønnow. Both chances resulted in corners that produced nothing.
At halftime the match was still goalless, despite a 74-25 possession split and a 10-0 shot count in favor of the hosts.
Union made a double substitution at the break, bringing on Woo-Yeong Jeong and Oliver Burke to create chances on the counterattack. Rønnow came close to releasing Burke on quick breaks, but Union struggled to produce much beyond opening themselves up at the back.
Freiburg were more threatening after the restart, with Scherhant (51st minute) and Suzuki (52nd minute) probing the defense. Suzuki came close from short range, sending the ball into the side netting.
Suzuki was initially credited with the goal in the 55th minute, but replays confirmed that Beste last touched the ball before it was deflected into his own net by Union captain Rani Khedira. Freiburg were ahead 1-0 ten minutes after the restart.
Union took more risks after conceding and were undone by a Freiburg counterattack about 12 minutes later. Burke had the best chance to level in the 61st minute but shot over the bar.
Scherhant then played Suzuki through after a high recovery, and Suzuki finished calmly past the onrushing Rønnow in the 67th minute for a 2-0 lead.
Union posed little threat after the second goal and were fortunate that Freiburg did not score more. Vincenzo Grifo missed a penalty in the 84th minute.
From the ensuing corner, substitute Lucas Höler was denied a third goal by an excellent reflex save from Rønnow. The final three minutes of normal time and five minutes of stoppage time were played in silence as both sets of supporters acknowledged a medical emergency in the stands.
Yuito Suzuki was among Freiburg’s most determined players. The 25-year-old had not scored since his sending-off against Schalke on matchday five, and recent talk had suggested he could be replaced by countryman Keisuke Goto.
Suzuki covered 10.53 kilometres, made 25 sprints and reached a top speed of 32.9 km/h. He recorded 44 touches, completed 77 percent of his 30 passes, and won three of seven duels.
His goal came from one of three shots and an expected goals total of 0.50.
Jan-Niklas Beste also delivered an industrious performance on Freiburg’s flank. The 27-year-old covered 11.56 kilometres, made 32 sprints and reached a top speed of 32.5 km/h.
He registered an assist, created four shooting opportunities and accumulated 0.23 expected assists. Beste also recorded 69 touches, won 60 percent of his ten contested duels, and completed six dribbles with a 67 percent success rate.
