• Freiburg’s strong start to the Bundesliga season kept going when they beat a tough Bochum team 1-0 at home
• Freiburg had the better chances, but Riemann’s acrobatic saves kept Freiburg from scoring.
• Both teams said that they deserved more from the game and from their season as a whole.

A strong start by Freiburg in the Bundesliga season kept going on Friday when they beat a tough Bochum team 1-0 at home.

In a wet and wild game, Italian midfielder Vincenzo Grifo of Freiburg scored the only goal when he headed in his own saved penalty, which Bochum goalkeeper Manuel Reimann had saved twice.

After the game, Freiburg coach Christian Streich said that his team “at the end of the day were deserved winners, even if it could have also been a draw.”

“From the amount of goal chances we had, (our win) is deserved and I’m really happy, that we’ve now got nine points after four games – that totally helps us.”

The captain of Freiburg, Christian Guenther, said that his team “got lucky in two or three moments, but we worked hard”.

“It’s extremely important in a season to make it through such games,” Guenther told DAZN after the game.

Kevin Stoeger, a midfielder for Bochum, said that his team deserved more from the game and from their season as a whole.

“This is really frustrating. We’re still on zero points,” After the game, Stoeger said, “I’m soaked.”

“In terms of performance, we deserved a draw. We played a good game, but what’s the point?”

In the first half, which was played in pouring rain, neither team was very good. Players had trouble getting into a rhythm as puddles grew all over the field.

Freiburg had the better chances, but Riemann’s acrobatic saves kept Freiburg from scoring. At the end of the first half, it looked like the teams might play to a goalless draw for the first time in 16 Bundesliga games.

Just five days ago, Reimann gave up seven goals at home against Bayern Munich. On this night, he was Bochum’s best player, and it was a shame that he gave up the penalty a minute into the second half.

Reimann and Freiburg’s Roland Sallai got into a fight, and Reimann was found to have grabbed the shirt of the Hungarian winger.

The referee pointed to the spot after a quick VAR check on a rain-soaked monitor.

This season, Bochum has lost three of its four games by just one goal. In the 85th minute, Filipino winger Gerrit Holtmann nearly tied the game, but his shot hit the post and was cleared by the home defence.

With the rest of the weekend’s games still to come, Freiburg is now in second place based on goal difference. On the other hand, Bochum is last.

If Bayern Munich beats Borussia Moenchengladbach at home on Saturday, they will get closer to the top of the table.

Also on Saturday, Borussia Dortmund will play away at Hertha Berlin to try to get their season back on track.

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