Villa 'set to be given a good game by Freiburg'

German football team Freiburg will give Aston Villa a good game when they meet in the UEFA Europa League final, a Bundesliga commentator said.

Dan O'Hagan, from Stourbridge, West Midlands, has watched Freiburg play 13 times. They were a club who has grown to become a team that can compete for the top six places in Germany's top division, he said.

Wednesday's match will be Villa's first European final since winning the European Cup in 1982, while Freiburg have never been in a major continental showpiece of any kind.

"Freiburg are a club who have a far smaller budget than Villa and they don't have the tradition of Villa, but what they do have is this immense team spirit," O'Hagan said.

Villa are currently in fourth position in the Premier League and have achieved a Champions League spot for next season. Freiburg sit seventh in the Bundesliga.

Freiburg's recent move to a new stadium and their stability, having had only five head coaches since 1991, point to a team that could take on a bigger side like Villa, O'Hagan, a freelance commentator who admits to being a Wolves fan, said.

"It is amazing when you consider how clubs hire and fire these days.

"I think most days Villa would win the game, but Freiburg do not underestimate or think they're a lesser team because they come from the Bundesliga," he added.

The final between the sides from Germany and England will take place on Wednesday in Istanbul, Turkey, kicking off at 20:00 BST.

O'Hagan will not be commentating but he will be watching, and said his brother was a Villa fan.

"I'm sure it'll be an amazing occasion.

"The fans from both teams will make it really a night to remember in Istanbul.

"If Freiburg win great for the Bundesliga, but if Aston Villa win I'll be as happy for their fans as anybody."

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