From BZ/dpa
Union Berlin leads the Bundesliga even after the first defeat. Coach Fischer has to prepare the Irons for a tight program. Boss Zingler speaks from the hearts of many fans.
On the Day of German Unity, work was done in Berlin-Köpenick. At least at the stadium at the Alte Försterei. Urs Fischer asked to train, behind closed doors. As he often likes to do at 1. FC Union.
Union coach Urs Fischer has to prepare his team for the Europa League in Malmö after the defeat of Frankfurt (Photo by Moritz Eden/City-Press GmbH) Photo: City Press
The processing of the first defeat in the Bundesliga since March on Saturday at Eintracht Frankfurt was not unusual secrecy for the iron.
Jesper Lindström and his teammates celebrate Frankfurt’s 2-0 win against Union, Berlin’s captain Christopher Trimmel is served Photo: Daniel ROLAND / AFP
After the 0: 2 it goes on anyway for the surprise team of German football. Malmö, Stuttgart, Malmö, Dortmund are the opponents in the Europa League and the Bundesliga until the Sunday after next. So hook it up and keep going.
They are still leaders after the eighth matchday.
Timo Baumgartl, here in front of Frankfurt’s Kolo Muani, didn’t have a good day in the away game Photo: picture alliance/ Sven Simon
More than the unusually lax appearance in Frankfurt, two interviews by Union protagonists caused a stir. Timo Baumgartldefense chief in the absence of Robin Knoche on Saturday, once again told the ZDF “Sportstudio” impressively about his cancer and thus straightened out the circumstances to a profane defeat in the Bundesliga.
And President Dirk Zingler. In a conversation with the editorial network Germany for the national holiday, he made a good deal of the Union’s self-image clear and spoke to many fans from their hearts.
Larger than life figures in the background. But in terms of sport, Union was usually ahead in the last few games against Leipzig Photo: picture alliance/dpa
Thinking in terms of East and West Germany is not his thing. But he sees his club as the only real representative of East German football in the Bundesliga. A verbal tip towards Saxony. “I’m happy for Leipzig. You can see Bundesliga football and international football. But you should also be honest: RB is not an East German club,” said the club boss.
Zingler: “RB is not an East German club”
League competitor RB Leipzig was founded in May 2009, almost 20 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall. “The corporate headquarters are in Austria. There is a club in Leipzig, in Salzburg and in New York,” said Zingler. “Behind this is an Austrian beverage company that is founding sports clubs to strengthen its brand. Leipzig is more of a random location,” added the 64-year-old. RB is a suitable football enemy for many.
Among other things, Union clearly stylizes itself in its club anthem as an East club that “cannot be bought by the West”. Nevertheless, Zingler said he didn’t like these “East-West comparisons”. In the east of Germany in particular, however, the surprising successes of the Irons were particularly valued, said the entrepreneur, and could also contribute to a special identification.
“It means something to people who think in those categories – and rightly so. We hear and feel the reactions we get from East German regions,” said Zingler. “There is joy and pride that we are leaders. On the other hand, we sense surprise from those who do not come from East Germany.” More than 30 years after reunification, Union Berlin is only the second former GDR Oberliga club after Hansa Rostock in 1992 to be at the top of the Bundesliga table.
When Rostock once led the league, Baumgartl was not yet born. He was born in Boeblingen in 1996. At Union, the Swabian has achieved cult status in recent months through his open handling of his testicular cancer. For a good 20 minutes, Baumgartl reported on TV about crying after the diagnosis, the chemotherapy, the emotions of the comeback.
A defeat in Frankfurt? She was “deserved”. Annoying, of course. But: “You set your priorities differently, you can classify everyday life.”