Hamburg. Freiburg. RB Leipzig. Union Berlin. Who would have thought that these four teams would be the last ones standing in the DFB-Pokal semi-final stage?
This season’s competition has certainly sprung some big surprises, with perennial winners Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund both suffering early exits. That has opened the door for these unheralded clubs to get a rare shot at silverware.
The DFB-Pokal 2022 odds have RB Leipzig and Freiburg as the favourites to meet in the final. But does this tournament have a few more surprises in store in the semis?
Read on below for SBOTOP’s in-depth preview of both DFB-Pokal semi-finals.
Hamburger SV vs SC Freiburg: Battle of the burgs
Freiburg are having an absolutely fantastic season. They are up in fifth spot in the Bundesliga, one point behind Bayer Leverkusen for the fourth and final Champions League spot. And now, they are one win away from reaching the DFB-Pokal final for the first time in their 118-year history.
Freiburg will head into this semi-final tie in fine form after back-to-back Bundesliga wins over Eintracht Frankfurt and Bochum. Roland Sallai starred as he scored a brace, with 22-year-old South Korean Jeong Woo-Yeong setting up both goals.
Christian Streich’s side are far from the most threatening side offensively; their leading scorer this season is Vincenzo Grifo, although five of his 11 goals in all competitions have come from the penalty spot.
But they just find to get the goals they need, and they have a strong defence that can help them grind out victories. That’s a fine formula for winning games, especially away from home, as Freiburg have shown; all four of their victories thus far in the DFB-Pokal have been away.
They will need to do so once more as they take on Hamburg at the Volksparkstadion. The second-division side are having another disappointing end to the season that will see them fall short of Bundesliga promotion once again. Over their last eight games, they have won just two games, with two draws and four defeats.
However, Hamburg could still salvage this season by winning the DFB-Pokal, a title they’ve claimed three times in their history (1963, 1976, 1987). They defeated former winners Karlsruher in the previous round to reach the semis.
Moreover, HSV are coming into a bit of form with two wins in their last three games, both of which have come at home. They thrashed Erzgebirge Aue 4-0 and beat ten-man Karlsruher SC 3-0 this past weekend.
Star striker Robert Glatzel scored in both games and is the second-leading scorer in Bundesliga II with 18 goals. He has also provided his share of DFB-Pokal 2022 highlights with four goals in the competition.
Glatzel and Sonny Kittel (8 goals, 11 assists) are by far Hamburg’s biggest goal threats, and they will both need to be at the top of their game to overcome Freiburg.
RB Leipzig vs Union Berlin: Red Bulls seek another final berth
There is no hotter team in all of Germany than RB Leipzig. The Red Bulls are up to third in the Bundesliga after a 1-0 win over Bayer Leverkusen. They are now unbeaten in their last nine league matches, with seven wins and two draws, as they look to make their third DFB-Pokal final in four seasons.
Aside from being in the semi-finals of the DFB-Pokal, Domenico Tedesco has also led the Red Bulls to the semis of the Europa League after a 3-1 aggregate win against Atalanta.
Christopher Nkunku scored both goals in their 2-0 second-leg victory, raising his total to 30 goals in this remarkable campaign. Nkunku also came off the bench to get his 14th assist of the season as he set up Dominik Szoboszlai’s winning goal against Leverkusen.
The 21-year-old Szoboszlai is finding his best form late in the season – he has two goals and an assist in his last three games – and will be another weapon to throw against Union Berlin along with Nkunku, Dani Olmo, Andre Silva, and Emil Forsberg.
But as explosive as Leipzig’s offence is, their defence also deserves credit. They have not conceded a single goal in their four DFB-Pokal games, although all four of their opponents to date have been lower-league sides.
That will change when they take on Union Berlin, who are having another terrific campaign. They are currently in sixth in the Bundesliga, four points behind fellow semi-finalists Freiburg for a Europa League spot.
Union are coming off three wins in a row, including a 4-1 thrashing of rivals Hertha in the Berlin derby. Taiwo Awoniyi has scored three goals in his last five games and is now up to a team-leading 13 goals on the season.
Like Freiburg, Union are hardly the most explosive offence; they have scored just 40 goals in the Bundesliga, which is in the bottom half of the league. But they make up for it by having a sturdy defence that has conceded just 39 goals, the fifth-fewest in the league.
Union Berlin were the last third division side to reach the DFB-Pokal final back in 2001, where they lost to Schalke. But they are obviously a much better team now and despite Leipzig’s impressive form, they will give the Red Bulls all they can handle.
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