Maximilian Eggestein strike sinks Paderborn as Freiburg continue perfect start
Julian Schuster's Freiburg made it two wins from their opening two Bundesliga outings as Maximilian Eggestein's first-half goal proved the difference away to newly promoted Paderborn on Matchday 2.
Paderborn 0-1 Freiburg
Goals: 0-1 Eggestein 26’
Paderborn returned to Bundesliga home action for the first time in six years after their goalless draw away at Mainz on the opening weekend. Meanwhile, Freiburg buoyed by victories in the UEFA Conference League qualifiers and DFB Cup, having also comprehensively won their league opener against Werder Bremen.
Paderborn head coach Ralf Kettemann made one change to his starting line-up, bringing Hamburg loanee Rayan Philippe straight into the side after the completion of his signing, whilst Julian Schuster handed Philipp Treu a first start of the campaign at right-back.
It was a lively start for both sides, with openings created at either end. Marvin Pieringer forced a save from Mio Backhaus inside the opening two minutes, while Nahuel Noll denied Igor Matanović multiple times throughout the early exchanges.
The game stayed level until the 26th minute, when Derry Scherhant's low cross caused chaos in the box. Eggestein's initial attempt was saved, before Yannik Engelhardt's follow-up was blocked, but the loose ball then fell back to Eggestein, who made no mistake on the second time of asking, smashing it home from close range to make it 1-0.
Freiburg continued to press for a second, with Matanović once again being kept out by Noll, who made a great save to deny what was a super effort on the volley, but ultimately, one goal would be all that separated the sides at the break.
At the inteval, Kettemann introduced Steffen Tigges for Philippe, who helped Paderborn return from the dressing room with more urgency. Backhaus produced a crucial save to deny Pieringer, who had tried to round the goalkeeper in a one-on-one shortly after the restart.
As the half went on, Tigges twice went close, and Laurin Ulrich also fired narrowly wide from just outside the box as the hosts improved markedly going forward.
Despite sustained late pressure, however, which included an acrobatic effort from Santiago Castaneda, the hosts could not find an equaliser, with Freiburg's defence holding firm for their hard-fought victory.
Man of the Match: Maximilian Eggestein
Eggestein scored the only goal of the game, pouncing on a rebound to fire Freiburg in front in the 26th minute. He also showed composure under pressure, escaping ten pressing situations at a 70 per cent rate, and topped the fantasy manager rankings for the match with 255 points.
He was named Man of the Match with 62 per cent of the vote.
Bundesliga Match Facts
xGoals: Paderborn 0.58 - Freiburg 1.19
Fastest player: Jordy Makengo (Freiburg), 34.14 km/h
Lowest goal probability: 0-1 by Maximilian Eggestein (Freiburg), 14 percent
Most pressed player: Maximilian Eggestein (Freiburg)
Pass efficiency: Gabriel Vidović (Paderborn), +1.4
Fantasy Heroes: Maximilian Eggestein (Freiburg, 255 Points), Igor Matanović (Freiburg, 253 Points), Mio Backhaus (Freiburg, 241 Points)
