Months of negative streak ended
©IMAGO
1. FC Union Berlin has ended its months-long negative streak and taken a step out of the crisis with new coach Steffen Baumgart. In the first game of the second half of the Bundesliga, the Köpenick team surprisingly defeated European Cup candidate 1. FSV Mainz 05 2-1 (2-1). The FCU had previously gone ten games without a three-pointer, and the first two games under Baumgart were also lost.
Benedict Hollerbach gave Union the lead in the first minute at the An der Alten Försterei stadium. Mainz quickly equalized with a penalty through Nadiem Amiri (5th minute). The 2-1 for the Berliners also came with a penalty: Robert Skov converted (24th).
The third game was the first goals and points for coach Baumgart with the Iron Men. With the victory, the Berliners were able to increase their lead over the relegation place to six points. Union has a duel with a direct competitor next Sunday: it’s at Millerntor against newly promoted FC St. Pauli (5:30 p.m./DAZN).
For Mainz, who played the second best first half of the season in the club’s history, it was the second defeat in a row. Nevertheless, the Rheinhessen are still well positioned in the fight for a place in the European Cup, as some competitors also failed to score points. Next Saturday the Zero Fives will host fourth-placed Stuttgart (3:30 p.m./Sky).
“With all force – stay in the league” was written on a Union fans banner on a sunny winter day. Stadium spokesman Christian Arbeit gave a combative speech and appealed for solidarity. Baumgart also left no stone unturned. “We are all looking forward to the so-called liberation strike. You just have to do a lot for it,” said the 53-year-old on “DAZN”.
During the week he declared major renovations unlikely. However, he changed his team to a total of six positions and again relied on three central defenders. The leading players Rani Khedira and Christopher Trimmel initially sat on the bench.
The guests were missing two key figures. National player Jonathan Burkardt is suffering from muscular problems. Armindo Sieb represented him. Head coach Bo Henriksen was suspended after his yellow-red card against Leverkusen and had to watch from the stands.
The Berliners were able to celebrate after just 57 seconds. Hollerbach intercepted a bad pass from Danny da Costa in the build-up game and pushed in. The joy only lasted for a short time: after a foul by Aljoscha Kemlein on Jae-sung Lee, referee Florian Exner awarded a penalty.
Amiri, who was back after his red card suspension, converted safely. Henriksen showed his celebratory fist in the stands. Sieb missed the best chance of a second goal for the guests in front of Union goalkeeper Alexander Schwolow (14th).
Despite the equalizer, the Berliners appeared to be significantly improved and more courageous offensively. Balls were captured much faster. When Dominik Kohr brought Hollerbach down in the Mainz penalty area, the next penalty was given. With his second goal of the season, Skov gave Berlin the lead.
After the break there were initially few scenes in the goal area. The home team increasingly relied on counterattacks. After an assist from Hollerbach, Skov shot over the goal from a promising position (59th). Mainz continued to have significantly more possession of the ball. However, the Köpenickers remained stronger in duels and survived the guests’ last attacking efforts unscathed.