4-0 in Augsburg! After the strong previous season, SC Freiburg is once again setting an example at the start of the new Bundesliga season. Michael Gregoritsch is right in the middle of it, cheering cautiously at first and then exuberantly. Also meet two other newcomers.
Augsburg (dpa / lsw) - At the victory celebration in front of the bulging guest block, Michael Gregoritsch had shed his restraint. "Super Freiburg" echoed from the ranks. The SC center forward enjoyed the cheering among his teammates. The 4-0 (0-0) win at FC Augsburg was a dream start to the new Bundesliga season for Europa League participants Freiburg and their newcomers.
Gregoritsch, of all people, who came from Augsburg in the summer, became the man of the game against his ex-club on Saturday - and at the same time didn't really know how to deal with it. After the Austrian's opening goal in the 46th minute, which he didn't want to celebrate too much out of respect for his former employer and his supporters, the new signings Matthias Ginter (61st) and Ritsu Doan (78th) also made it onto the top scorers list of the DFB Cup finalists of the previous season. In addition, Vincenzo Grifo scored with a directly converted free kick (48th).
"He did a lot of things well. He put himself at the service of the team," said Freiburg coach Christian Streich about Gregoritsch. "I'm very happy for him." The attacker must now continue on this path. "He has the right quality, he's a really good kicker," explained the coach. "But he has to work the central defenders properly and he has to do many avenues - he did that today and for that he gets absolute credit."
He "of course wanted it to go like this," said Gregoritsch. "Thats how it is suppost to be." After his headed goal, he preferred to be happy secretly between his teammates instead of in public, he explained. He was also involved in Ginter's 3-0 lead. It was the deciding factor in a game in which the visitors increasingly took control in front of 26,310 fans. And at the end of which they could be happy about a nice side effect: With the victory, the Baden team passed Eintracht Braunschweig in the all-time table of the Bundesliga and entered the top 20.
Freiburg's plan to increase the number of staff and to equip themselves with well-known newcomers for the triple load from the league, cup and Europa League has worked at first glance. Coach Streich didn't want to overestimate the three goals from Ginter, Gregoritsch and Doan. In the end, they are "just statistics," said Germany's coach of the year. It was much more important to him "that all the players put themselves at the service of the team."
Such a high victory for Freiburg was not in sight at the break. But the double whammy shortly afterwards set the course. "It's extraordinary that things turned out that way in the end," said Ginter, who returned to his home club from Borussia Mönchengladbach in the summer. "I'm incredibly happy." The 46-time national player also praised his new colleague Gregoritsch. "He did a great job. It's great that we have a player like that up front." Freiburg's new centre-forward can then enjoy the next goals he might score without any consideration.
