Freiburg vs Schalke 04 Prediction: A win for the home team

As the 29th round of the Bundesliga match continues on Sunday 23rd April, two teams with opposing goals when relegation-threatened Schalke 04 travels to Freiburg, a team vying for the Champions League. The hosts have a four-match winning streak over Thomas Reis' team going into the weekend and will want to keep it going. 

Last Sunday, Freiburg put on an outstanding collective effort as they defeated Werder Bremen 2-1 at Weserstadion by mounting a second-half comeback. This came after the home side's seven-game undefeated league record came to an end on April 8 when they suffered a home loss to league-leading Bayern Munich. Freiburg currently sits fifth in the Bundesliga standings with 50 points, one point off the spots in the Champions League, after playing 28 games so far and picking up 14 victories and 8 draws.

Schalke, on the other hand, defeated Hertha Berlin 5-2 last Friday, earning three crucial points in their battle for survival. Since their 2-0 triumph against Bochum in March, Reis' team has lost twice and drawn twice during a four-match losing streak. Schalke is currently second from the bottom of the Bundesliga table with only six games left to rescue their season, while Freiburg is in fifth position, one point below the top four. Schalke is presently occupying the 17th position in the Bundesliga table with 24 points from 28 games played.

With the home side vying for Champion's League qualification, nothing but a win is expected. 

Freiburg (DWDDLW)

Thanks to another strong season under Freiburg's veteran manager, the team is still on track to clinch back-to-back top-six finishes. Although Freiburg has played well so far this season, dropping only six of their 28 Bundesliga games, there is a belief that the home team can secure a spot in the Champions League. In fact, with third-placed Union Berlin lying just two points above them in the Bundesliga standings, Streich and his team will feel confident about their chances of ranking even higher at the conclusion of the season.

Although it is important to keep in mind that Freiburg defeated Bayern to get to the DFB-Pokal semifinals earlier this month, Freiburg enters the match on Sunday with one loss in five games across all competitions. Freiburg's most recent setback came in a close 1-0 loss to Bayern Munich.

The Freiburg team has excelled at home this season, dropping just two of their 14 league contests at the Europa-Park Stadion while giving up only 12 goals, enough for the second-best home defensive record in the division.

An ankle injury will keep Gregoritsch out of this fixture. Gulde and Kyere are still out due to thigh and knee injuries, respectively. 

Freiburg's possible starting lineup:

Goalkeeper: Flekken;

Defenders: Kubler, Ginter, Lienhart, Gunter;

Midfielders: Eggestein, Hofler; Doan, Grifo;

Strikers: Sallai, Holer.

Schalke 04 (WDDLLW)

Schalke 04's performance on the road has been appalling throughout the season. They have won just one of their 13 league away games while scoring a pitiful seven goals, four fewer than VfL Bochum, the team with the second-lowest number of goals scored on the road. However, it is important to note that since Thomas Reis took over from Frank Kramer as manager in October, Schalke has significantly improved.

Reis actually supervised an eight-game undefeated streak between January and March, securing six draws in addition to significant victories against Stuttgart and Bochum to offer the away team a chance to stay in the top flight. After suffering back-to-back losses to Bayer Leverkusen and Hoffenheim earlier this month, relegation concerns returned. However, Schalke responded by thumping Hertha Berlin 5-2 last weekend to move two points above the bottom team.

Schalke 04 is just three points away from safety, but if they want to avoid difficulties, they must repeat last weekend's performance in their remaining games.

Schalke 04 has Soichiro Kozuki, Cedric Brunner, Justin Heekeren,  and Sebastian Polter all on the injury list. Doubts still persist on the availability of players such as Ralf Fahrmann's health and Tim Skarke. 

Schalke 04 possible starting lineup:

Goalkeeper: Schwolow;

Defenders: Uronen, Jenz, Kaminski, Matriciani;

Midfielders: Latza, Kral; Skarke, Drexler, Bulter;

Striker: Terodde.

Expert Betting Tips

Schalke and Freiburg enjoyed quite different seasons thus far, with Freiburg vying for a Champions League position and Schalke 04 fighting to stay in the German top division (Bundesliga). 

Freiburg enters the game hot off of a tenacious team effort last week, and while Schalke will be aiming for consecutive victories, we are expecting them to prevail once more.

Freiburg looks likely to bolster their top-four challenge with a convincing victory against Schalke 04, a team with a bad record away from home this season. Freiburg has won eight of its 14 home league games this season while allowing only 12 goals in the process.

Potential scoreline could be 2-3 or 3-0 in favour of the home team.