Missing out on the Champions League would have far-reaching consequences for Leipzig. The Saxons have it in their own hands. But the pursuers Union Berlin and SC Freiburg are lurking.
His own task in the three-way battle for the Champions League had only just been completed when Timo Werner was already thinking ahead. “It’s great that Union is still meeting Freiburg,” said RB Leipzig’s international before the game of direct competitors next Saturday.
The Berliners and the Sport-Club take away the points – good for the Saxons, who after the 1-0 on Saturday in Freiburg as the new third in the table are the closest to the urgently needed qualification for the premier class.
“We are now back where we see ourselves from our claims,” said coach Marco Rose in the ZDF interview with one point more than the pursuers, of which Freiburg would currently miss the premier class in fifth place. “We have completely different ideas in Freiburg, our club is structured completely differently – these are completely different business models,” said SC coach Christian Streich. The Berliners, who lost 1-0 in Augsburg on Saturday, are in a similar position.
Leipzig stands in its own way
“We have one goal, we want to qualify for European business. I think the starting position is still very good,” said Union coach Urs Fischer. It doesn’t necessarily have to be the Champions League in Köpenick, as Rani Khedira confirmed: “We want to take the next step next week.” The pressure is higher in Leipzig.
“If we’re honest, third place could and should have been there much earlier. We got in our own way,” said Werner. The weak phase between the end of March and the beginning of April with a win in five competitive games seems to be over. RB recently won six of the past seven games across all competitions.
“We also had a good phase when we beat Celtic Glasgow twice and Real Madrid,” said Werner, looking back at the current premier season. “But such performances have to last for a season. We have to do better and then we can finish the Champions League earlier in the next few years and then tackle other things.”
Leipzig still has to play Bayern
Only then does the whereabouts of the top performers around the Spanish national player Dani Olmo seem realistic beyond the season. Leipzig thinks more in categories like Borussia Dortmund and leaders FC Bayern, especially since the second cup win in a row is possible on June 3rd. “We know we’ve laid a good foundation,” said Kevin Kampl, who scored the winning goal in Freiburg after coming on as a substitute in the 73rd minute. “But we also know that it can very quickly look very different again.”
After the home game against Bremen on Sunday, it’s off to Bayern. On the last day of the game, relegation candidates FC Schalke 04 come to Leipzig. “If we go to the home games and think we can do it, it can backfire,” said Kampl.
Freiburg struggles against top teams
The Berliners, however, are struggling with a wear and tear. They have won just one of their last five league games. Nevertheless, Fischer is satisfied. “I think Union is going very well,” he said in an interview with “Sportschau”. That also applies to Freiburg, but they have problems especially against the top teams.
In this Bundesliga season, the Breisgauer won only one game against the top five teams. “We can’t get a point against clubs like Bayern or RB,” said Streich, who was satisfied with his team’s reaction after the 5-1 defeat in the DFB Cup semi-final against Leipzig on Tuesday. “We still don’t have any points.”
The people of Leipzig took them home with them. They turned around just in time this season. “We can turn a season that has been okay so far into an outstanding one,” said Kampl.
Source: Stern
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