We have reached the final round of fixtures in the group stage of the 2023/24 Europa League and on the 14th of December, we have a meeting between West Ham and SC Freiburg.
The match will take place at the London Stadium and the hosts are currently top of the group on 12 points, with the visitors in second place but on the same number of points.
#WOBSCF 0:1 (90.)Schluuuuuuuuuuuuss!!!!! pic.twitter.com/liiiQyRthQ— SC Freiburg (@scfreiburg) December 9, 2023
#WOBSCF 0:1 (90.)Schluuuuuuuuuuuuss!!!!! pic.twitter.com/liiiQyRthQ
West Ham come into the match on the back of a hugely disappointing 5-0 loss at Fulham in the Premier League last weekend.
Fulham opened the scoring in the 22nd minute and added two further goals before half time to put the game beyond West Ham.
The Hammers had no answer to Fulham’s attacking play and they scored two more goals in the second half.
The defeat at Fulham was the first loss in 7 games in all competitions for West Ham.
They have beaten Burnley and Tottenham Hotspur away plus Nottingham Forest at home in the Premier League and defeated Olympiacos at home plus TSC away in the Europa League.
The only draw was at home against Crystal Palace in the Premier League.
In terms of the Europa League, West Ham have won 4 of their last 5 fixtures in the competition.
They are undefeated in 4 of their 5 most recent home Europa League games and have seen both teams scored in 3 of their last 4 Europa League matches on home soil.
SC Freiburg travel to the London Stadium having defeated Wolfsburg 1-0 away from home in the Bundesliga on the weekend.
The only goal of the game was scored in the 74th minute and the victory leaves SC Freiburg 8th in the Bundesliga.
The win over Wolfsburg means SC Freiburg are undefeated in their 4 most recent fixtures in all competitions.
There have been wins over Mainz away in the Bundesliga and Olympiacos at home in the Europa League.
SC Freiburg were also held to a 1-1 draw at home by Darmstadt in the Bundesliga.
Trends show SC Freiburg are unbeaten in 5 of their last 6 away matches in the Europa League.
They have seen both teams score in 3 of their 4 most recent away Europa League games.
Team news: West Ham are without injured striker Michail Antonio. There are also doubts over the fitness of Alphonse Areola, meaning Lukasz Fabiański could continue in goal.
SC Freiburg make the trip to London without several injured players, including Kenneth Schmidt, Yannik Keitel, Maximilian Philipp, Max Rosenfelder, Christian Günter, and Daniel-Kofi Kyereh. Midfielder Noah Weißhaupt is a doubt due to illness.
Both teams know the importance of finishing top of the group and avoiding the playoffs.
That means we should see a hugely competitive match, despite the fact both teams have already qualified from the group. SC Freiburg have been difficult to beat on the road in the Europa League of late and they could have enough to take a point, with both teams scoring.