National coach Hansi Flick (left) and DFB sports director Rudi Völler watch a certain Bundesliga game at the weekend Photo: picture alliance/dpa
By Matthew Koch
Prominent guests at Union Berlin’s second game of the season!
The DFB bosses will certainly come mainly because of the new Unioners Robin Gosens (29) and Kevin Volland (31) as well as Kevin Behrens (32) and Robin Knoche (31).
The squad for the international matches against Japan (September 9) in Wolfsburg and France (September 12) in Dortmund will be announced on Thursday. Will there be a Unioner for the first time? The current national defender Gosens (16 internationals/2 goals) has the best chances. Attacker Volland made 15 appearances (1 goal) between 2014 and the end of 2021.
For fellow striker Behrens, a nomination would be a sensation. But he scored three headed goals in the 4-1 win over Mainz, and he’s in top form at the moment.
Curious: Darmstadt coach Torsten Lieberknecht (50) would have liked to have signed Behrens from Sandhausen in 2021, but Behrens went to Union.
Knoche was part of the extended World Cup squad for Qatar. Six Rani Khedira (29) was also affected. However, due to a calf injury, he will be out longer.
The aforementioned Unioners remain in focus when the team plays well in Darmstadt. Both teams meet for the first time in the Bundesliga. In league two, Union has always lost to the lilies: 2014/15: 0: 5, 2017/18: 1: 3, 2018/19: 1: 2. The current coach Urs Fischer (51) was also there at the last appearance. He says: “It will be a difficult task again.”
Perhaps there will be an exchange between Flick and Völler with Union manager Oliver Ruhnert (51) on the sidelines of the game. He is one of the biggest DFB critics and is a guest at the ZDF sports studio on Saturday evening.