According to Bild, Freiburg won 3-1 away against Motherwell in the first leg of the UEFA playoff, with 32-year-old center-back Matthias Ginter scoring twice, sending a clear signal to new German national team coach Jürgen Klopp. Ginter was one of Freiburg's most outstanding players last season, providing solid defense and frequently creating threats with his forward runs, scoring a total of 5 goals throughout the season. He originally had high hopes of participating in the World Cup.
However, former German national team coach Julian Nagelsmann did not include him in the squad. Germany subsequently suffered a disappointing exit from the World Cup, and Nagelsmann has since left the club, with Jürgen Klopp now in charge. Ginter is no stranger to Klopp: he played for Klopp's Borussia Dortmund during the 2014/15 season.
This time, Ginter immediately stepped up his game. However, Freiburg had a very poor start, conceding a goal to Motherwell just 69 seconds into the match. Longailo assisted Charles Cook to score, giving the Scottish team an early 1-0 lead, catching Freiburg off guard. But Freiburg quickly responded; in the 28th minute, Schörhant took a free kick, and Ginter headed it in to equalize. Then came a highly controversial VAR moment, with the goal being reviewed for nearly five minutes, the referee suspecting a foul by Ginter during the header. After a lengthy review, the referee ultimately ruled the goal valid.
Freiburg gradually took control of the game, creating numerous chances, with Matanovic and Schörhant frequently threatening the opposition. Then, another controversial VAR decision occurred: Motherwell's Mullman fouled Freiburg's Engelhardt in the penalty area, and the referee initially awarded a penalty. VAR intervened again, this time with a harsher ruling: Mullman was shown a straight red card. Ginter then stepped up to take the penalty.
The center-back, not usually a regular penalty taker for Freiburg, calmly slotted the ball home to make it 2-1. This was the first time in his long and successful career that he had scored twice. Julian Schuster's Freiburg gave their opponents no further chances, with new Japanese signing Keisuke Goto scoring in the 6th minute of stoppage time to make it 3-1. Freiburg won 3-1 away from home, taking a commanding lead ahead of the second leg next Thursday. This night held special significance for Ginter: he scored two goals in European competition and sent a warm greeting to Klopp with his performance.
