S04 beaten 4-0 in Freiburg on the final day

Three changes to the side

Jonjoe Kenny was suspended after picking up his fifth yellow card of the season last time out. He was replaced at right back by Timo Becker. Can Bozdogan, who was banned against Wolfsburg, and Ahmed Kutucu also came into the team, with Benito Raman and Michael Gregoritsch making way.

S04 with the better chances, SC score twice

David Wagner’s side had several decent opportunities in the opening stages. Rabbi Matondo almost had a great chance in the six-yard area from a Timo Becker flick on, but Christian Günter cleared in time to deny him (10’). Can Bozgodan then tested out SC ‘keeper Mark Flekken with a long-range effort two minutes later, before Weston McKennie headed wide shortly after that.

Freiburg’s first chance came after 20 minutes – and it resulted in the opening goal too. A quick counter attack saw Luca Waldschmidt in behind, and the German international hit a low effort past Nübel to make it 1-0. The Royal Blues continued to have more of the ball despite going behind, although they failed to break down a Freiburg side that were happy to sit back. Weston McKennie tried a long-range shot after 29 minutes, which he couldn’t quite get on target.

The hosts were much more clinical in front of goal and doubled their lead in the 38th minute. Jonathan Schmid got the goal, converting a cutback from a Christian Günter free kick in the far corner.

Defeat quickly sealed

The second half couldn’t have begun any worse for the Royal Blues. The stadium announcer was still announcing the three Schalke substitutions when Lucas Höler made it 3-0. He was played in behind by Vincenzo Grifo, and then took it round Nübel to effectively kill the game off (46’).

The third goal clearly took a lot out of Schalke, as Freiburg subsequently enjoyed the play after that. Luca Waldschmidt then added a fourth in the 57th minute from a long ball by Dominique Heintz. Alexander Nübel was on hand to tip a Günter shot onto the crossbar three minutes later, while, at the other end, Bozdogan went close from 20 yards out (66’).

Nils Petersen could have added a fifth from 10 yards out in the 70th minute, instead he blazed over the crossbar. Freiburg then took some tempo out of the game and were happy to see out the match with a compact defence. Schalke only had one moment of note: Malick Thiaw’s thunderbolt from range was well saved by Mark Flekken. Nübel made a strong save from a powerful Grifo effort in his final game for S04, meaning it ended 4-0.

No start date for the new season

The S04 players will undergo a number of performance tests before they go off on their summer holidays. There is currently no start date for pre-season or the new Bundesliga campaign.