Inspired Ortega earns Bielefeld a point

Bielefeld 0-0 Freiburg

Anyone expecting a cautious match with the teams gradually feeling their way back into things after a long summer break will have been pleasantly surprised by the gung-ho reality on display at the Schüco-Arena. Both sides began energetically, with Yannik Keitel setting the tone early on with a rasping drive from distance that whizzed just wide. Lucas Höler was then denied by an inspired Ortega from a corner, and the Bielefeld goalkeeper subsequently produced stunning saves to thwart Nico Schlotterbeck and Höler again, this time with a breathtaking block at point-blank range. The hosts had promising chances of their own too, most notably for Masaza Okugawa who popped up inside the six-yard box with just Mark Flekken to beat, but the Freiburg custodian came out on top.

Okugawa had a golden opportunity to make amends early in the second half when he pounced on a mistake by Philipp Lienhardt to bear down on Flekken’s goal, but once again the visiting goalkeeper would not be beaten. At the other end, Ortega continued to frustrate Freiburg’s attackers too, parrying Höler’s drive from the edge of the box for a corner, before somehow keeping out efforts from Jonathan Schmid and Keitel’s follow-up on the rebound in quick succession. Bielefeld’s hopes of mustering a response suffered a setback midway through the half when Okugawa was taken off with a knock, while Freiburg coach Christian Striech brought on Roland Sallai in a bid to break the deadlock. Neither side was able to find a winner, though, leaving each with a share of the spoils.

• Fabian Klos and Ritsu Doan were joint top scorers for Bielefeld last season with five Bundesliga goals apiece.
• Despite the aforementioned duo's efforts, Arminia scored a league-low 26 goals.
• Frank Kramer is embarking on his first full season as a full-time Bundesliga coach. He took 17 points from his first 12 top-flight games in charge of Bielefeld during the second half of 2020/21.
• Vincenzo Grifo had a direct hand in a career-best 19 Bundesliga goals in 2020/21.
• After Grifo's nine, Sallai and club record marksman Nils Petersen each scored eight times.
• Streich is the Bundesliga's longest-serving active coach. He has overseen 290 Bundesliga matches at the Freiburg helm.

Bielefeld: Ortega - Brunner, Pieper, Nilsson (Van der Hoorn 77'), Laursen (de Medina 77') - Schöpf, Prietl, Kunze, Okugawa (Hack 67') - Lasme (Krüger 77'), Klos (c) (Serra 90')
Unused subs: Kapino, Ramos, Gebauer, Wimmer
Out: Vasiliadis (ankle)
Coach: Frank Kramer 

Freiburg: Flekken - Gulde (Heintz 62'), Lienhart, N. Schlotterback - Schmid, Keitel (Santamaria 70'), Höfler, Günter (c) - Jeong (Sallai 70'), Höler (Demirovic 85'), Grifo (Haberer 86')
Unused subs: Uphoff, Kübler, Weißhaupt
Out: Burkart (knock), Petersen (knee)
Coach: Christian Streich