Preview: Arminia Bielefeld vs. Freiburg - prediction, team news, lineups

Arminia Bielefeld will begin their 2021-22 Bundesliga campaign on Saturday as they welcome Freiburg to the Bielefelder Alm as the side aims for a more impressive season.

The visitors head into the game on the back of a strong pre-season and a victory in the DFB-Pokal as the club looks to build and push further up the league table this time around.

Match preview

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Last season was a tough one for Arminia Bielefeld, finishing just one place and two points above the relegation playoff spot, which they will be aiming to improve upon this time around.

With just nine victories throughout the Bundesliga, it was a long season for the club with every game proving to be a vital one, which is why they will now be aiming to kickstart the new campaign with a victory.

Despite the difficulties that Arminia Bielefeld had last season, it did mark their return to the top flight and ensuring survival was the aim, which they will now attempt to build upon.

Former Red Bull Salzburg youth academy director Frank Kramer was brought in as the manager during the season, taking control in March and he did have a positive impact, with the team only losing three times in the league under his control.

Now with a full summer behind him to build on Kramer will believe that he can take things to the next level and a confident victory in the first round of the DFB-Pokal has started things off well.

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Arminia Bielefeld come into this fixture on the back of a 6-3 victory in their most recent outing, while pre-season brought two defeats, a victory and a draw.

Despite the fact that Arminia struggled last season, the last time the side hosted Freiburg they did manage to earn three points with a 1-0 victory, which would be welcomed once again by Kramer.

Christian Streich's squad managed a mid-table finish last season and their poor away form was a key factor in stopping them from moving further up and challenging for European places.

Picking up just five wins on the road and letting in 29 goals proved to be a source of weakness for the club, which will certainly be in the back of their minds heading into this opening day encounter away from home.

Freiburg managed to put together an undefeated pre-season with two victories and a draw, while they also progressed in the DFB-Pokal, which will see the team head into this fixture with confidence on their side.

Team News

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Freiburg will be boosted by the return of Jeong Woo-yeong to the squad after his difficult summer, which saw him not make the cut for the Olympic Games, despite the fact he had been preparing.

After a strong performance in their first competitive game of the season, there is a good chance that Streich will look to name the same starting lineup as he aims to build some chemistry within his group.

Jonathan Schmid was on the scoresheet to help Freiburg progress in the cup competition and the Frenchman who returned to the club in 2019 will be hopeful of playing his part once again.

For Arminia Bielefeld, it was Bryan Lasme who has proven to be a threat in front of goal, scoring two in the DFB-Pokal, and similarly to Freiburg, there could be an unchanged starting XI on Saturday.

However, experienced central defender Mike van der Hoorn and new signing Guilherme Ramos could find himself slotting in alongside if changes are made defensively.

Arminia Bielefeld possible starting lineup:
Ortega; Van Der Hoorn, Ramos, Nilsson, Laursen; Prietl, Okugawa, Schopf, Kunze; Klos, Lasme

Freiburg possible starting lineup:
Flekken; Gulde, Lienhart, Schlotterbeck; Schmid, Keitel, Hofler, Gunter; Jeong, Grifo; Holer

We say: Arminia Bielefeld 1-3 Freiburg

Even though Freiburg struggled away from home last season, the club will have plenty of confidence heading into this fixture that they can get the job done to start with a bang.

With Arminia Bielefeld having had difficulties it will certainly be a tough opener for them as Freiburg have the experience and quality edge as they will aim to push on to fight for a European place this season.