Freiburg’s Julian Schuster unleashes epic rant on emotions in football after Bundesliga booking | OneFootball

SC Freiburg head coach Julian Schuster had great difficulty containing himself during Saturday afternoon’s Bundesliga fixture against Werder Bremen. The 40-year-old fought persistently with famous German match official Deniz Aytekin. Eventually, at the end of the match, Aytekin opted to hand out a booking. The young SCF head coach will now be suspended for Freiburg’s next Bundesliga match against regional rivals Hoffenheim. 

Julian Schuster worked hard to earn his fourth yellow

Bundesliga coaches, unlike players, need only four accumulated yellow cards to be forced off touchline. Aytekin handed out the decisive caution at 90+1 after what had been a very trying day between Schuster and his officiating team. Schuster consistently taunted the officials throughout the stressful second half of Freiburg’s narrow 1-0 victory over visiting Werder. 

The sequence of events leading up to the booking

Schuster didn’t agree with the decision, after VAR review, to send SCF midfielder Johan Manzambi off on a straight red card for a challenge on Bremen’s Olivier Deman in the 50th-minute. In order to cope with being down a man, Schuster brought on Yuito Suzuki as part of a tactical re-format in the 56th-minute. 

Despite being shorthanded, Suzuki managed to score a memorable goal in the 78th-minute. Suzuki’s supposed 2-0 was nevertheless chalked off due to what appeared to be a very soft foul on Bremen’s Felix Agu. When Werder captain Marco Friedl fouled Suzuki in the 90th, Schuster completely lost it. 

Aytekin booked Friedl for the foul, but saw fit to book Schuster as well when Schuster appeared upset that Friedl wasn’t given a red. Schuster – who will also be missing Manzambi in the monster match against Hoffenheim – denied that he was complaining about the scope of Friedl’s punishment afterwards. 

Schuster’s rant on the booking

“I was just upset about the foul,” Schuster told Sky Germany after the full-time whistle. “And at no point was I complaining about the yellow card decision. It’s a shame that people can’t tell the difference. Because I feel passion and emotion should be tolerated.“

“Sure I received some yellow cards that were justified and that I take full responsibility for,” Schuster added later at the post-match press conference. “In this situation, it was just about my emotions in that precise moment.

“And if you want to tell me that my finger-wagging was too theatrical, just give it a rest,” Schuster continued. “I’m just getting used to the fact that [due to VAR], we can’t celebrate goals anymore. That bit of emotion has been taken away from us.

“I hope that those of us on the sidelines are still allowed to have different kinds of personalities,” Schuster concluded. “And that we can show them and don’t have to always react the same way. I’d like it if such emotions aren’t taken away from me.“

GGFN | Peter Weis