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RB Leipzig: Dani Olmo fires cup specialists to another final

Matt Ford in Freiburg
May 3, 2023

Defending champions RB Leipzig have reached a fourth German Cup final in five years after making short work of last year's finalists Freiburg. Spanish midfielder Dani Olmo pulled all the strings for the cup specialists.

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SC Freiburg's Lukas Kuebler in action with RB Leipzig's Dani Olmo
Midfield magic: Dani Olmo was the man-of-the-match as RB Leipzig thrashed FreiburgImage: Heiko Becker/REUTERS

SC Freiburg 1-5 RB Leipzig
(Gregoritsch 75' – Olmo 13' Henrichs 15', Szoboszlai 36' 90+7' pen, Nkunku 45+1')
Mooswaldstadion, Freiburg

For a German Cup semi-final, the pre-match atmosphere in Freiburg was strangely subdued.

Perhaps it was due to the warm spring weather, or perhaps the small Black Forest city was still waking up from its long May Day weekend. Or perhaps it's because the locals knew who their team was up against.

Opposition fans have many names for RB Leipzig: a fake team, a marketing team, a plastic team. "No acceptance for RB!" read the Freiburg supporters' choreography. But they are gradually earning themselves another name: a cup team.

After comfortably disposing of Freiburg thanks to four goals in a rampant first half, the first two in the space of just two minutes, current holders RB Leipzig will head to Berlin to defend their title in their fourth German Cup final in five years.

"At some point, perhaps there's a sort of innate understanding in a certain competition," head coach Marco Rose told DW. "I've only been here for eight months but the players can certainly draw on experience."

For Rose, however, it will be a first major final. "You can't take it for granted," he continued. "It's a special achievement and we want to take the final step."

Marco Rose: 'An art form which we're all trying to perfect'

They may have strolled through this season's German Cup campaign by an aggregate score of 22-1, eight of which came in the first round against fourth-tier Teutonia Ottensen and two of which saw off Borussia Dortmund in the quarterfinal, but RB's Bundesliga season has been marked by wild fluctuations in form.

"You're in a tunnel and it's constant battle to maintain the same tension, the same level, the same attitude, the same mentality, the same energy, week for week," said Rose, attempting to explain why his team haven't always been able to replicate their cup form in the league. "If I had an answer, it would be great! Sometimes little things don't work that you can't necessarily control, but it's an art form which we're all trying to perfect."

Marco Rose, Head Coach of RB Leipzig, applauds play during the DFB Cup semifinal match between Sport-Club Freiburg and RB Leipzig
Marco Rose says replicating cup form in the league is "an art form."Image: Matthias Hangst/Getty Images

After winning just four of their opening 11 games, it took until the new year before Leipzig properly entered the race for the top four.

"We've simply had no consistency," captain Willi Orban told Kicker magazine this week, also highlighting his team's injury problems. Combative midfield lynchpin Xaver Schlager has been out since March, while "Christopher Nkunku and Dani Olmo, two of our best players, have been absent for long periods."

Dani Olmo: power and energy

Olmo in particular missed five games in autumn due to a knee ligament tear and five more in February with a muscle strain.

In Freiburg, the Spanish midfielder underscored his importance on the team, opening the scoring with a glancing header and setting up three more for Benjamin Henrichs, Dominik Szoboszlai and Nkunku before the break.

Whether injecting pace down the right wing, linking up play in between Freiburg's midfield and defense, or popping up himself in the box, the 24-year-old was at the heart of everything Leipzig did well and earned praise from his coach.

"Dani was fantastic today," said Rose. "He's getting into a good rhythm at the moment, full of power and energy, and we just hope he can stay fit for the rest of the season."

Leipzig's Spanish midfielder Dani Olmo and Freiburg's German midfielder Yannick Keitel vie for the ball during the German Cup (DFB Pokal) semi-final
Power and energy: Spanish midfielder Dani Olmo pulled the strings for RB LeipzigImage: Thomas Kienzle/AFP/Getty Images

Freiburg and Leipzig battle for Champions League

As for Freiburg, their quest for a first ever major trophy – and revenge after last season's bitter cup final defeat to RB – is over for another season, despite playing most of the second half with an extra man after Josko Gvardiol was sent off.

But another historic first is still within reach: a debut qualification for the Champions League.

Christian Streich's side have already amassed a club-record 56 points in the Bundesliga but are still locked in a battle for a top four spot with Union Berlin — and RB Leipzig, who return to the Black Forest on Saturday knowing a repeat performance would see them leapfrog Freiburg.

For that to happen, Rose's cup specialists will have to replicate their form in the league. Or, as Rose would put it: produce their cup artwork in the Bundesliga tunnel.

Edited by: Wesley Dockery