Are you STILL or are you ALREADY online???
Ticker

1. FC Union Berlin vs TSG Hoffenheim

Bundesliga, 4. Matchday

1. FC Union vs Hoffenheim

Bundesliga, 4. Matchday

Sat., 21. September 2024, 15:30 Uhr
An der Alten Försterei
2 : 1
21.831
SR: Dr. Matthias Jöllenbeck

Union Remain Unbeaten After 2-1 win Over Hoffenheim

Match report

1. FC Union Berlin remain unbeaten in 2024/25, thanks to their 2-1 win over TSG Hoffenheim on Saturday afternoon. They were two goals up after only five minutes, through Tom Rothe and Wooyeong Jeong, only for former Unioner, Marius Bülter, to halve the defecit in the second half. 

1. FC Union Berlin: Rönnow – Haberer (70. Trimmel), Doekhi, Vogt, Leite, Rothe (76. Querfeld) – Schäfer, Khedira – Jeong (70. Bénes), Siebatcheu (46. Skarke), Hollerbach (65. Vertessen) 

TSG 1899 Hoffenheim: Baumann – Drexler (46. Gendrey), Hranac (46. Tohumcu), Akpoguma – Kaderabek, Stach, Bischof (84. Bruun Larsen), Prass (90. Hlozek) – Kramaric, Berisha (58. Tabakovic), Bülter 

The starting XI

There were two changes compared to the side who performed so strongly in the goalless draw in Leipzig, but the back line remained unchanged, with Frederik Rönnow starting his 100th game for Union in goal behind Diogo Leite, Kevin Vogt and Danilho Doekhi, with Janik Haberer and Tom Rothe in as wing-backs, right and left respectively.

Rani Khedira was partnered by Andras Schäfer in the centre of midfield, while up top saw Benedict Hollerbach joined by the two substitutes last week, Jordan Siebatcheu and, making his first ever start for Union, Wooyeong Jeong.

Attendance: 21.831 

Goals: 1-0 Rothe (4.), 2-0 Jeong (6.), 2-1 Bülter (68.) 

Union run riot, Jeong and Rothe open their accounts

As the sun poured down onto a packed Alte Försterei, few expected what was to come. But a single look at Benedict Hollerbach as he snapped into challenges on Tim Drexler and Mergim Berisha within moments of kick off would have given them a hint. He would run riot, playing like a man possessed, always looking to get the ball moving forwards at pace, and he almost had the better of Drexler after only three minutes, drawing a sliding tackle, and winning a corner.

It was played short by the starting debutant, Wooyeong Jeong, and whipped back into the box. Leite won a header, before the ball bounced chaotically around, pinball style. But as it flew and whizzed around the box, from man to man, limb to limb, Tom Rothe saw it in slow motion as it dropped, shooting first time past Oliver Baumann to score his first ever goal in an Union shirt.

They were a goal up before most had a chance to draw breath. But that was nothing.

Hollerbach again charged at Drexler, following a mistake, this time the ball finding Jeong, making his first ever start for the club, via Oliver Baumann, the luckless Hoffenheim keeper, and Rothe.

He took a touch, moved it onto his left as the Hoffenheim defence lost their heads all around him, and finished past Baumann, stroking the ball into the net as if he had all the time in the world.

It was 2-0 with only five minutes played; both goals the scorers’ first for the club, both superbly taken. Svensson, later on, called it the “best case scenario”, and few could believe their eyes.

Hoffenheim were rocking; Hollerbach was a whirlwind, unplayable with the ball at his toe, his head down and his shoulders back. And even when the struggling guests contrived a move forwards, trying to block out the noise and the worry, Diogo Leite, having the best season of his career at Union so far, was there to make a picture-perfect tackle on their dangerman, Andrej Kramarić, from behind.

Yeong and Hollerbach soon swapped sides, taking turns in tormenting other defenders, and after 16 minutes the irrepressible Hollerbach broke down the right this time, hitting the byline and cutting the ball back to Haberer, but ultimately Jordan was unable to get the timing of his jump right, and his header flew not towards goal, but left, towards Rothe.

The Waldseite and Gegengerade did their call and response, as loud as they have all season, it was spine tingling stuff. And Union attacked and attacked. Jeong struck a free kick into the wall, coming back to him. He lofted the ball into the box again, Jordan had a go, Haberer had a go, but somehow it stayed out of the goal, if only by the numbers massed on the line alone.

Jeong and Hollerbach combined again, with the curly haired Bavarian cutting inside after 23 minutes, ignoring the pleas of Leite, still up in the box, desperately calling for the ball, and let fly a bending shot that dipped just too late to beat Baumann.

Yeong then took his turn, moving in and cracking a drive off the outstretched boot of Kevin Akpoguma for a corner, that seemed bound for the top corner

There was a pause, a blessed breather for the guests, when Doekhi stretched too far for another ball dropping into the box from a corner. And after that the game settled down slightly, with Union content to move the ball about, to hold position, and to rely on their back three of Leite, Kevin Vogt and Doekhi, who were exuding confidence, passing the ball out swiftly and precisely.

Jordan, keen to join in the fun, then showed his own nous with his back to goal, taking the ball on his chest with Robin Hranac at his back, and backheeling the ball almost into the path of the overlapping Hollerbach.

Rönnow, last weekend’s hero, making his 100th appearance, and first as a two-time Union footballer of the year, made his first save with three minutes of the half to go, diving to his right to tip Drexler’s low drive out for a corner before it snuck in at the back post.

And when Kramarić finally stood over a set-piece, with time almost up and the Unioner baying in their terraces, he ballooned it over the bar to their utter delight.

To round things off it was, of course Jeong, who left Drexler for dead, who crossed for Hollerbach, his header taking a deflection and out for another corner. They didn’t look like they needed the pause. They could have played on for hours.

Old Boy, Bülter, drags Hoffenheim back into it, but Union hang on for the win

Bo Svensson brought Tim Skarke on at half time, celebrating the signing of his new deal at the club only yesterday, for Jordan up top, as Pellegrino Matarazzo, his opposite number, took off the shellshocked Drexler and Hranac, moving to four at the back. One of them, Valentin Gendrey, skipped past Rothe, but overhit the ball and Rönnow cleared it almost onto the roof of the towering main stand.

The former Unioner, Marius Bülter, did better after a couple of minutes from the same position, but again Rönnow was there, this time blocking the ball at his near post.

Svensson’s side looked a little more patient too, no longer playing as if they were fleeing a burning building. Still Yeong was at the heart of everything, wanting the ball, always looking to dribble past his opponents, but when Union won a throw in the Hoffenheim half with seven minutes played of the half he motioned for calm.

Andras Schäfer, though, ignored the implication, and he danced beautifully around Prass and Akpoguma with a pirouette before ten minutes had been played. Nor did he, himself, as he joined Skarke in the chase of Akpoguma over 35 yards, forcing the Hoffenheimer back to his own byline, with panic in his eyes. He would do similarly to Alexander Prass with 25 minutes to play, bullying him all the way.

Bülter dropped his shoulder, throwing Doekhi off balance at the other end, cutting the ball back across goal, but even then Leite was there to clear the resulting shot away with little cause for alarm. The former Unioner attacked again, but this time Haris Tabakovic, the former could only plant his header into the arms of Rönnow, just moments after coming on.

Yorbe Vertessen came on for the tiring Hollerbach on 65 minutes – joined by Christopher Trimmel and László Bénes, replacing Jeong and Haberer as Svensson reacted to what came next - soon afterwards, but it wasn’t long until he would see Rönnow picking the ball out of his own net. The excellent Bülter cut inside again from the left, choosing to shoot, himself, this time, and rifling home inside the near post.

Union suddenly looked a little shaky, where before they had been superb, Tom Bischof hit a free kick from deep on the right that Doekhi headed clear. Things got messy soon after, the game a hailstorm of foul and counter foul, of charging, bull-like, at each other. Rothe went off, hurt by the touchline, and was replaced by Leopold Querfeld. Tabakovic tussled with Doekhi in the box while Valentin Gendrey tried to get in behind the melee as play went on. Tom Bischof got a yellow card for a lunge on Vertessen.

Again, Bülter went down the left, but his cross was blocked by Trimmel; Akpoguma caught Skarke as they went for a ball in the air on the edge of the centre-circle. And as Doekhi was down on the right, Svensson pointed to his temples, telling his players to keep their concentration.

It wasn’t easy. “Hoffenheim then switched up and got back into the game with their quality,” was the coach’s explanation. “Overall, we still have a lot to work on.”

Schäfer, though, was still brimming, he played a one-two with Trimmel on the right, somehow drawing a last gasp save from Baumann with his cross as it suddenly seemed destined to dip under the bar.

It was fraught, tackles were raining down from both sides, the volume reaching ever higher new levels as Umut Tohumcu caught Schäfer as he skipped onto Bénes’ brilliant chest down and lay-off. Bénes stood over it, 25 yards out, just to the right, but though he cleared the wall, he couldn’t get it under the bar.

And still it went on, as Doekhi made another of hundreds of interventions, this time on Kramarić, well into time added on. But as Rönnow took a final goal kick, launched up field with all his might, the whistle finally blew.

It was greeted with nothing but joy from the Unioner, and they’d stay for an eternity after the final whistle, too. Thanks to their lightning start, and their two debutant goals, they remain unbeaten this season.

Union Host Hoffenheim

Match preview

On Saturday, 1. FC Union Berlin’s men’s team will host TSG 1899 Hoffenheim. Kick off at the Alte Försterei in the game, part of the Bundesliga’s 4th matchday, is at 15:30.

The lie of the land

The team from the Kraichgau region started the new season with a 3-2 win against newly promoted SV Holstein Kiel, with Andrej Kramaric scoring all three TSG goals. However, following this, TSG suffered two defeats against, losing 3-1 away at Eintracht Frankfurt and 4-1 away at Bayer Leverkusen.

Union, meanwhile, are undefeated so far, having taken a point last weekend against Champions League participants Leipzig. Goalkeeper Frederik Rönnow shone, particularly, saving Lois Openda’s 74th minute, thus ensuring that Union, with just one goal conceded, have the best defence in the league.

The opponents

The team from Sinsheim are currently in 14th place after the first three matches. With five goals scored and nine conceded, Hoffenheim currently have the second-weakest defence in the league. Last season, the team under coach Pellegrino Matarazzo conceded 66 goals but scored just as many, which ultimately secured them 7th place and a place in the UEFA Europa League.

After the 2017/18, 2018/19 and 2020/21 seasons, TSG fans can once again look forward to international opponents such as Olympique Lyonnais, Tottenham Hotspur and FC Porto in the UEFA Europa League.

When it comes to scoring and setting up goals for TSG, Croatian international Andrej Kramaric has been head and shoulders above the rest for years. Last season, the 33-year-old was involved in 23 goals in 31 competitive matches and already four goals and an assist in three games in the current season. In eight and a half years with the Kraichgau outfit, the centre forward has a remarkable total of 193 assists in 288 appearances.

The head to head

The balance sheet between the two clubs is completely even; both teams have won four, lost four and there have been two draws. The last meeting in February this year was won by Union with a late goal from former Leeds loanee Brenden Aaronson.

The personnel

Union's head coach Bo Svensson will have to do without Kevin Volland (rehab) and the injured Josip Juranović and Yannic Stein.

The reunions

This Saturday's clash will see a reunion of sorts for a few old teammates on both sides.

In the current Union squad, there are four players with a TSG Hoffenheim past, Kevin Volland, Janik Haberer, Kevin Vogt and summer signing Robert Skov. Volland played 144 games for TSG between 2012 and 2016, while Janik Haberer made 17 appearances for the second team in the 2014/15 season in the Regionalliga Südwest. Having moved from Sinsheim to Köpenick during the last winter transfer window, Kevin Vogt will face his former teammates, having made a total of 226 appearances for TSG. Skov only joined Union a few weeks ago, having previously spent five years at Hoffenheim, where he made 126 appearances.

On the other side, midfielder Grischa Prömel has been playing in Sinsheim since the summer of 2022. He wore the Union shirt from 2017 to 2022, scoring 20 goals in 141 competitive games and was part of the side that was promoted to the Bundesliga in 2019. He will miss Saturday's game due to injury. Marius Bülter also played for Union between 2019 and 2021 before joining FC Schalke 04. After Schalke were relegated to the 2. Bundesliga, the striker signed for 1899 in the summer of 2023.

The coaches’ views ahead of the game

“All you read at the moment is that Hoffenheim have lost their last two games,” said Union’s head coach, Bo Svensson, returning after the recent bout of sickness that kept him from the bench against Leipzig. “However, their opponents were also Frankfurt and Leverkusen. If you look at TSG's transfer record, you realise that they are of an extremely high quality. Of course, we want to look after ourselves first and foremost, but we know very well that this will be a difficult task.”

Service information

As usual, the stadium at the Alte Försterei will open two hours before kick-off. The game is sold out in both the home and away sections. All visitors are therefore advised to arrive early. Information about the shuttle buses that will be used due to the closure of the tram system at the Alte Försterei stop, as well as the fan letter from the Berlin police, can be found here (German).

The game will be broadcast live on Sky. In addition, there will be an audio stream on rbb24 Inforadio and on rbb24. As usual, Union will also provide information on the game via the club's own live ticker, as well as in English and Spanish on Twitter.

 

AFTV Videos

MatchStatistics

1. FC Union Berlin vs TSG Hoffenheim

51 % Possession 49 %
83 % Pass Completion Rate 76 %
51 % Successful Tackle Rate 49 %
12 Shots on Goal 7
10 Crosses 18
3 Yellow Cards 3
0 Yellow-Red Cards 0
0 Red Cards 0

Last match

Date Home Result Away