Christian Günter seemed immediately ready for more great deeds. "It's easier to travel with a bit of adrenaline and joy," said the SC Freiburg captain with a view to the upcoming game in the Bundesliga on Sunday at FC Schalke 04. "We'll try everything to get there healthy and deliver fireworks there again."

Not a trace of tiredness in Freiburg's marathon men. Also in the 1-1 (0-1) against Olympiakos Piraeus, their 18th competitive game this season, they showed an energetic performance on Thursday. The reward was Lukas Kübler's late equalizer in the third minute of added time. The early group victory combined with the entry into the round of 16 of the Europa League is fixed.

FC Nantes had helped SC to secure first place in Group G by beating Karabakh Agdam 2-1 in the parallel game. What was remarkable, however, was the effort that the Badeners put in against the Greek record champions, especially in the final phase, despite their constant workload.

Günter: "Energy through positive experiences"

Last week the late goals in regular time and extra time in the DFB Cup against St. Pauli. Now the last-minute compensation in the European Cup. Where do the people of Freiburg get this strength from? "The energy also comes from positive experiences," said full-back Günter, who hasn't missed a minute of a competitive game this season. The current success makes "every step easier," explained the 29-year-old, who once again worked tirelessly against Piraeus and prepared Kübler's goal.

"Mentality is so, so important," said coach Christian Streich. "The team is so close together and so willing to do anything. They are so open to criticism. It is a great pleasure for me to be able to coach this team with my fellow coaches."

There are still five games left for SC before the World Cup break. "So far the forces are holding up. I hope that we can go on like this for another two and a half weeks," said Günter. Freiburg wants to stay in the top group in the league. And also in Baku, where in the final Europa League group game against Karabakh Agdam next week it's about nothing for them, according to Günter they want to "take a win with them." Clear case: mentality beats fatigue.