Ingolstadt v SC Freiburg
Football ; Germany : Bundesliga
Audi Sport Park – Ingolstadt
Wednesday, 21st December 2016 - kickoff 20:00 CET
Football ; Germany : Bundesliga
Audi Sport Park – Ingolstadt
Wednesday, 21st December 2016 - kickoff 20:00 CET
Bottom three team FC Ingolstadt 04 (3-9-3, 12 points) will look to extend their two-game winning run as they clash with newly-promoted side SC Freiburg (6-7-2, 20 points) at their home field of Audi Sportpark on Wednesday, Dec. 21 as the 2016-2017 Bundesliga season continues.
Ingolstadt has been struggling all season in the cellar of the German top flight but has managed to string two consecutive victories in the last two rounds. The team has gained momentum by being unbeaten in four of their last five matches but has remained in the bottom three relegation zone, two points ahead of 17th-place Hamburg and four points above new cellar-dwellers SV Darmstadt.
Die Schanzer is coming off an impressive 2-1 upset win over reeling contenders Bayer Leverkusen on the road at the BayArena last Sunday, as per Fox Sports Asia.
Ingolstadt midfielder Alfredo Morales drew first blood in the 26th minute of the match with a header from the center of the box off a cross by Austrian defender Markus Suttner following a corner kick.
Bayer midfielder Charles Aranguiz was then sent off in the 49th minute with a second yellow card to give head coach Maik Walpurgis' team a one-man advantage.
Leverkusen was able to equalize the game in the 63rd with a goal from Swiss forward Admir Mehmedi, but Israeli midfielder Almog Cohen buried the winning goal 10 minutes later to give Ingolstadt their second consecutive win.
Meanwhile, Freiburg held fellow middling side Schalke to a 1-1 draw at the Veltins Arena last Saturday, via SkySports.
After a goalless first half of play, Freiburg striker Florian Niederlechner broke the deadlock in the 64th minute. However, a 74th-minute goal by Schalke midfielder Yevhen Konoplyanka equalized the match as both teams settled for a share of a point in the overall standings.
Freiburg is currently in the 10th spot of the league table after being winless in five of their last six games.
Prediction and Predicted Lineup
The predicted result is a 1-0 win for FC Ingolstadt.
FC Ingolstadt 04 starting lineup (3-4-2-1 formation): Hansen; Tisserand, Roger, Matip; Suttner, Cohen, Morales, Hadergjonaj; Lezcano, Gross; Jung
SC Freiburg starting lineup (4-4-2 formation): Schwolow; Gunter, Soyuncu, Kubler, Gulde; Grifo, Frantz, Stenzel, Schuster; Niederlechner, Haberer
Match Stats
Ingolstadt have taken ten of a possible 15 points from five games under Maik Walpurgis. Only Bayern and Leipzig have more in this period (12).
Die Schanzer are out of the automatic relegation places for the first time since Matchday 5.
Freiburg are unbeaten in three games for the first time this term.
Ingolstadt have won two on the bounce for the first time this season (1-0 against Leipzig and 2-1 in Leverkusen). They have never managed three wins in a row in the Bundesliga.
Freiburg lost their first four away games of the season but have since lost just one of their last four on the road.
The only previous competitive meetings between these sides took place in the Bundesliga 2 in 2008/09. The home side won on both occasions.
The Betting Verdict
Ingolstadt showed fantastic performances in their recent games and achieved a couple of valuable victories against much stronger teams. On the other side, SC Freiburg did not play particularly well, but still collected points and that is what matters the most.
Ingolstadt have bigger motivation to win this game and escape the dangerous zone, while SC Freiburg will not be damaged much even if they lose this game. Considering recent form and overall way of playing I expect Ingolstadt to win this match.
