Union Berlin has never won against Bayern Munich. In the top game on Sunday it could be time. There are at least a number of good reasons for this.
Aissa Laidouni is not afraid of Bayern. why? The Tunisian has not lost a game since joining 1. FC Union in January. While discussions about the coach and the escapades of some stars dominate the headlines in Munich, the Unioners have sneaked up. Union is third in the Bundesliga – only the goal difference separates the iron from leaders Bayern Munich.
Bayern boss Oliver Kahn takes Laidouni and his colleagues seriously as competitors for the championship. So serious that he reminded his team again this week which club they play for: “Now the players have to show that they are Bayern Munich,” said Kahn. Laidouni counters: “We have a lot of quality.” You saw that against Leipzig.
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Efficient machine
In fact: In Leipzig, the Union turned a deficit and presented some of their greatest strengths. Leipzig took the lead, but lost in the end – the same happened in Hoffenheim, Mainz and Wolfsburg against Union in 2023. Urs Fischer’s team needed six shots on target to win 2-1 against the Saxons. Union only needed 235 degrees for his 43 points – 171 fewer than Bayern for the same number of points. No Bundesliga team works more efficiently in this respect than the well-oiled Union machine.
Successful even without chances
Little spectacle, hardly any chances to score – for many observers this is not a masterful game of football. The 0-0 against Schalke at the bottom last weekend then gave everyone who has been waiting since the start of the season for Union to finally break in with further arguments for their doubts about the quality of Urs Fischer’s team. After all, she failed to create chances even against the weakest opponents in the league.
The first half against Ajax Amsterdam during the week showed that Union sometimes doesn’t need any chances to score goals. A maximum of one and a half serious attacks turned into a 2-0 lead. Then the Köpenicker countered with the fast Sheraldo Becker. Even the smallest spaces behind the opposing defense are enough for the attacker to be dangerous.
Upamecano’s red card as a sample scene
If Bayern can be cracked, then with a lot of depth in the attacking game. Bayern coach Julian Nagelsmann gave the excitement of the last matchday a perfect demonstration of what is threatening if his players don’t cooperate against Union.
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After Thomas Müller lost the ball on the edge of the sixteen, the record champions were perfectly positioned to counter-press. But instead of putting pressure on the ball, four Bavarians watched as Gladbach set up Rami Bensebaini’s long ball with two short passes. Meanwhile, the nimble attacker Alassane Plea got off to a flying start, escaping Dayot Upamecano. The Bayern defender was sent off.
Nagelsmann fears Köpenicker pace
Whether the red card was justified or not determined the discussions about the league in the days that followed. Urs Fischer plays into the cards that Bayern’s hesitant counter-pressing after losing the ball was not the focus. Because 1. FC Union is particularly dangerous in precisely such situations. Fischer’s team goes relentlessly for second balls, likes to play long passes from central defense and looks for depth behind the opposing defensive line via fast attacker Sheraldo Becker. This is exactly where Bayern coach Julian Nagelsmann sees the danger for his team: “We can’t make any mistakes in possession of the ball so that their speed doesn’t get onto the pitch.”
functioning team
Especially since Union can bring even more speed to the pitch with some clever commitments in winter. Jerome Roussillon and Josip Juranovic strengthen the flanks with their dribbles and deep runs and showed against Ajax that they can set offensive pinpricks with individual actions, even if their own combination game doesn’t work.
There are no individual superstars here. We function together as a whole.
Juranovic knows who he has to thank for securing his offensive excursions: “There are no individual superstars here. We work together as a whole.” As soon as one of the rail players charges forward, one of the midfielders closes the gap. “Union always puts their football on the field: defending deep, a lot is designed for counterattacks, and with their physicality, they keep sharpening the second ball“Warns Nagelsmann. With the Irons, every player knows at all times which spaces on the field must be occupied.
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Good organization against exceptional talent
What the team lacks in creativity and passing accuracy on ball, they make up for with their unique organization during play. All players in the squad have internalized this, which is why substitutions or rotation do not cause a break in the Union game. To date, the team has only allowed 16 big chances. If someone is free to finish, Frederik Rönnow, the safest goalkeeper in the league, is waiting. No keeper saves a higher percentage of shots on goal.
Of course, FC Bayern is the best team in Germany individually, but the Nagelsmann team is far from being as structured as Union. No wonder Kahn tried to grab the players on their sporting honor. Against Union, the Munich individualists are dependent on playing off their class. Otherwise, they will have a hard time overcoming the perfectly staggered Berliners. So far, Union has never won against FC Bayern. But the chances have never been as good as on Sunday.
Broadcast: rbb24, February 25, 2023, 6 p.m
