Keystone
Freiburg reach the quarter-finals of a European Cup for the first time in the club’s 122-year history. The Breisgau side overturned a 0:1 deficit against Genk in the Europa League to win 5:1.
After just 25 minutes, Freiburg, who started with Swiss players Johan Manzambi and Bruno Ogbus, had turned around the previous week’s result with goals from Matthias Ginter and Igor Matanovic. The Belgians equalized the score before the break.
The preliminary decision was made when Vincenzo Grifo made it 3:1 with the help of the visitors. The Italian’s goal was historic in two respects: it was his 106th goal in a Freiburg shirt, replacing Nils Petersen as the club’s record goalscorer. At the same time, he took the Breisgauers into the quarter-finals of the Europa League for the first time, after they had failed twice in the previous three years. SC Freiburg lost to Juventus Turin in the round of 16 in 2023 and West Ham United in 2024. Manzambi also played his part in a peaceful final phase, setting up Freiburg’s fourth goal in exemplary fashion.