Freiburg vs Celta Europa League quarter-final preview: Where to watch, predicted line-ups, team news
Wednesday, April 1, 2026
Article summary
Where to watch, predicted line-ups, team news for the UEFA Europa League quarter-final first leg.
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Celta are set to travel to Freiburg for the first leg of their UEFA Europa League quarter-final tie.
Match at a glance
When: Thursday 9 April (21:00 CET)
Where: Stadion am Wolfswinkel, Freiburg
What: Europa League quarter-final first leg
Next: Quarter-final second leg, Thursday 16 April (18:45 CET)
How to follow: Build-up and live coverage can be found here
Where to watch the game on TV
Fans can find their local UEFA Europa League broadcast partner(s) here.
What you need to know?
Four-time winners of Germany's second tier, and losing German Cup finalists in 2021/22, Freiburg are enjoying their best European campaign, after making it through the Europa League round of 16 at the third attempt. The Breisgau side lost 2-0 home and away to Sevilla in the 2013/14 group stage in their only previous encounters with Spanish sides, but Julian Schuster's side are on a run of nine straight European home wins and have earned the right to dream.
Claudio Giráldez's Celta have a few more kilometres on their European clock than Freiburg, but have been absent from continental competition since they reached a club pinnacle by reaching their first major European semi-final, narrowly missing out against Manchester United in the 2016/17 Europa League. They have yet to win in three UEFA games in Germany (D1 L2, including a 2-1 loss at Stuttgart in this season's league phase), but showed their strength on the road in a 2-0 win at Lyon in their round of 16 decider.
Possible line-ups
Freiburg: To follow
Celta: To follow
Form guide
Freiburg
Form: WWLLDL (most recent game first)
Next: Freiburg vs Bayern, 04/04, German Bundesliga
Celta
Form: LWDDLW
Next: Valencia vs Celta, 05/04, Spanish Liga
Views from the camps
Julian Schuster, Freiburg coach: "It's the first time that we have the opportunity to play in the quarter-finals. I'm really happy for the boys, for the team, for all the people who have been here at this club for a long time, and also for our supporters. We're on this journey through Europe and it's really exciting."
Claudio Giráldez, Celta coach: "We know how difficult it is to reach the Europa League quarter-finals. We’re enjoying the moment – that’s the beauty of football, it brings people together. We’re proud to make everyone at the club happy."
Reporter's view
To follow