Freiburg – Cologne

The home team will take revenge for the crushing defeat in the first round.

Despite Freiburg and Cologne, two mid-table Bundesliga sides, meeting on the same pitch, the match looks quite intriguing. The opponents are not your run-of-the-mill representatives of the Bundesliga. The hosts have, in recent years, established themselves as one of the most stable clubs in the league's second tier of the table. The Freiburg players have not been able to challenge for the title or for a spot in the Champions League. However, while the old guard occupy the key positions in the standings, this team sits fifth to sixth in the division, which currently allows Germany to be represented in the Europa League for the third time in the last four seasons. Cologne, during that period, was less stable, which brought them big problems. In the season before last, the Goats finished second from bottom, but last season they pulled themselves together and won the second-tier division of the country. Now Cologne acts as a newcomer to Germany's top flight with the aim of cementing their place here and building a stable management geared toward long-term Bundesliga performances, as it had been before. The bookmakers have made the home side the favorites for the upcoming match, offering odds of 1.91 on their victory. On Thursday Freiburg played a home match in an economical lineup against the weakest Europa League participant, Maccabi Tel Aviv. A 1-0 victory guaranteed Julian Schuster's team a place in the top eight of the overall stage. For the next six weeks Freiburg can focus on national competitions. In the Bundesliga the team sits below its usual positions, so in the match against Cologne they are aiming for victory. Importantly, Freiburg's last home defeat was five months ago in the opening round of the Bundesliga. For almost six months the Europa-Park stadium has been a real fortress for Freiburg's players. Cologne has been less ambitious this season, but in the upcoming match its players have little to lose. In all January matches the Goats scored one or two goals, including a goal against Bayern Munich. Yet they managed to defeat only Mainz, who were in complete disarray. In the first leg Cologne managed to thrash Freiburg at home 4-1, something Freiburg's camp remembers well and is eager to avenge. Let's back the home team.