Freiburg score three against Celta Vigo and edge towards Europa League semi-finals

Freiburg achieved a historic first by progressing to the quarter-finals of a UEFA tournament, securing a 5-2 aggregate win over Genk in the previous stage. At the weekend, they came close to defeating Bundesliga frontrunners Bayern Munich, only to concede twice in added time and fall to a 3-2 defeat. Determined to recover from that late slip against the Bavarians, they controlled the opening period against their Spanish rivals.

Igor Matanovic missed the match's initial opportunity by heading wide of the bar within the first two minutes, followed by Ionut Radu making a solid save on a strong shot from Maximilian Eggestein.

Yet by the 10th minute, the Breisgau outfit had taken the lead courtesy of their club icon. Vincenzo Grifo, who has just surpassed the club's all-time scoring record, added to his tally by bending a shot into the bottom corner from beyond the box.

Celta responded with significant ball control but created few dangers, allowing their hosts to capitalise on that inefficiency soon after the half-hour. When Philipp Treu slipped the ball to Matanovic from a narrow position, he opted wisely against shooting and instead passed across for Jan-Niklas Beste to finish from mere yards out.

Freiburg might have extended their lead before the interval if Johan Manzambi's strike had veered slightly to the left of the post it struck.

Post-break, Freiburg continued to pose the greater risk yet struggled to fashion chances of similar calibre, with Radu easily gathering a low effort from Grifo at range.

Prior to this tie, Celta boasted the highest goal tally in the competition, but Freiburg's sturdy defence largely contained them. Notably, they did not manage a single effort on target over the full 90 minutes, their nearest miss being a first-time shot from Fer Lopez that drifted narrowly beyond the upright.

In the end, Freiburg sealed a third goal with about 15 minutes left as Matthias Ginter nodded in from a corner kick.

This result positions them strongly for a second semi-final appearance this season, following their advancement to the DFB Pokal's last four.

For Celta, this marked their first loss in nine away fixtures across competitions, and they will need a marked upturn in form back in Spain next week to stand any hope of attaining a second ever UEL semi-final berth.