Kurzweg returns and nets in 3-1 win over Greuther Fürth
Match report
Peter Kurzweg marked his return to the team with a goal in Union Berlin’s 3-1 win over Greuther Fürth at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei.
It’s the fourth win on the bounce for Jens Keller’s side who are continuing their push towards the top-end of the 2.Bundesliga. Akaki Gogia and Simon Hedlund also landed on the scoresheet.
The 23-year-old left back, signed from Würzburger Kickers in the summer, was the only change from last week’s 2-0 win at Jahn Regensburg. The dependable Dane Kristian Pedersen dropped out of the squad, after suffering from muscle problems this week.
A pre-match optimism filled the terraces and spaces of the Alte Försterei after a superb run of league results. That was translated into a bright, energetic start from Union Berlin with Kurzweg setting the tone for the rest of the afternoon. Good pressing forced a mistake in the Fürth ranks and, with the help of Gogia, the Union left back finished off confidently.
The visitors looked completely shell-shocked and struggled to stem the flow of the Union attack. Gogia and Hartel passed up chances early on, while Polter couldn’t convert one of his own in the 17th minute. The Köpenick club was in complete control, but didn’t make enough of it in the final third.
The home crowd had to wait until the 41st minute before there was a two-goal margin in the match: Trimmel attacked from the right, cut back to Gogia who then smashed into the opposite corner of the goal.
Fürth pulled one back in the second half when Max Wittek made a rare foray into the Union defensive third and smashed the ball past Jakob Busk from around 30 yards out. This offensive pressure was the anomaly rather than the trend in the second period and Union restored a two-goal advantage with Hedlund firing in from the left-hand side.
“You’ve seen a team today that is determined to win,” said coach Keller. “Everyone has completed the last yards. Of course, we should have put away one or two more goals through counterattacks, but we are very happy with 3-1,” he added.
League business is put in the closet for the time being, with attention turning to Tuesday’s trip to Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen in the DFB Pokal. Kick-off in the BayArena is 18:30 local time.
No complacency: Union and Fürth battle at the Alte Försterei
Match preview
This weekend, on matchday 11, Union Berlin will host Greuther Fürth at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei. Jens Keller’s side are on a superb run of form, turning a period of five without a win to three victories on the bounce in recent weeks.
After their away wins in Aue and Regensburg, Union will want to convert that into a home performance, similar to the 5-0 trouncing of Kaiserslautern at the end of September.
Fortunately, Keller has no serious personnel worries that could affect his team selection for the weekend and can continue building continuity on the pitch. Spaniard Marc Torrejon is fully fit and could slot into a left-sided centre back position alongside Toni Leistner. Japanese right-back Atsuto Uchida is still out, however, and looks unlikely to displace Christopher Trimmel in his current form.
Meanwhile, Greuther Fürth, one of the preeminent German football clubs pre-Bundesliga, have concerns ahead of the trip to capital. Reserve keeper Balasz Megyeri is out long-term, while Sercan Sararer, Nik Omladic and Matthias Bolly have been ruled out ahead of the weekend’s game.
“We need to get the maximum out of the team, so we’ve got any chance of taking something,” said Kleeblätter coach Damir Buri. Fürth ended a run of three winless games with a solid home performance against Erzgebirge Aue, running out 2-1 winners, although not enough to move out of the relegation zone.
Union have traditionally experienced problems against Greuther Fürth, with the capital club winning two of 20 meetings. Significant meetings include on the DFB Pokal run of 2002, where the Berliners ended up reaching the final of the competition.
Keller emphasised that his team cannot afford to take anyone in the league lightly. “We didn’t play a bad game,” Keller said of last week in Regensburg. “But we can do much better.”
Tickets for Saturday’s 13:00 kick-off remain on sale for supporters after Fürth returned some spares from the away block.
