1:5 home defeat – 1. FC Union Berlin goes down against ripped off Bayern
Imago Images/Matthias Koch
Audio: rbb24 Inforadio | April 20, 2024 | Guido Ringel | Image: Imago Images/Matthias Koch
Union Berlin took a clear hit in the relegation battle. The Köpenick team lost 1:5 against Bayern Munich. The second-placed team showed a routine performance – and 1. FC Union continues to struggle with its offensive weakness.
- 1:5 against Bayern Munich was Union’s third defeat in a row
- FCU’s first goal after 387 minutes was a side note in stoppage time
- Köpenicker slipped to 14th place with four game days to go
- Now there are duels against the direct competition in the table cellar: Gladbach, Bochum and Cologne
Coach Nenad Bjelica’s team slipped to 14th place due to their third defeat in a row. The gap to the relegation place is three points. However, if Mainz manages to score points in Freiburg on Sunday, it could collapse further. On the remaining four match days, Union has to compete in Gladbach and Cologne and welcomes Bochum and Freiburg at home.
Bayern with a really big rotation
Bjelica had the entire squad available against Bayern Munich – and the Croatian changed compared to him 2-0 defeat in Augsburg three times: Robin Gosens, among other things, returned to the starting line-up after his suspension. Lucas Tousart and Kevin Volland also played from the start. Rani Khedira, Alex Kral and Mikkel Kaufmann slipped onto the substitutes’ bench.
Bayern’s team against 1. FC Union had very (!) little in common with the team from the Champions League semi-final on Wednesday. Coach Thomas Tuchel changed to six of eleven positions. Jamal Musiala didn’t even travel to Köpenick. And yet with the new starting eleven players – be it Alphonso Davies, Minjae Kim or Thomas Müller – there was a formation on the pitch for which the term B-Elf would have been inappropriate.
Union initially stable – in every respect
But Union had the first approach to the goal: Gosens ducked under the ball after Trimmel’s cross – and confused Bayern keeper Manuel Neuer, but also surprised his teammates (1st). After that it was the Munich team who did what was to be expected: They controlled the game. And FCB had their first half chances: Harry Kane’s long-range shot was parried by FCU keeper Frederik Rönnow (5th), Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting aimed just past the near corner from the half-left position (9th).
Before the game: The Waldseite celebrates the 20th anniversary of the ultra group “HammerHearts”.
However, there were no longer any major moments of danger in the Köpenick penalty area. Bayern lacked the necessary offensive power when they had the ball – and that was also because Union were very stable. Be it as a collective in defense or individually in a duel. A symbol: Union striker Benedict Hollerbach, who simply let Bayern defender Eric Dier bounce off him during one of Berlin’s – quite regular – fast counterattacks. However, he didn’t finish after that (18th).
Munich residents find holes in the Berlin Wall
The fact that Munich took a 1-0 lead in the 29th minute was by no means inevitable. No, in fact it was her first top opportunity ever. Tel played from a central position into the penalty area, Müller let through for Goretzka, whose ‘Kracher’ shot bounced off the bottom edge of the crossbar and into the goal.
Union then increasingly went on the offensive. But the home team lacked exactly what Bayern showed in the 1-0 win: rip-off. Even before the duel with the record champions, the Köpenickers had gone three games without a goal. Neuer in Bayern’s goal ensured that it stayed that way: He parried Lucas Tousart’s long-range shot (33′) and Gosens’ strong volley (42′). While the score remained 1-1, the Munich team celebrated the 2-0 just before the break: Kane found a hole in the Berlin Wall with a free kick from a half-right position, Rönnow stretched in vain (45th + 1). It was the Brit’s 33rd goal of the season – eight more than Union have scored in total this season.
After the break it will be bitter for the Köpenickers
From the Köpenickers’ perspective, the story of the second half is quickly told and it is a bitter one. Only Bayern played. The hosts were now in the role of spectators and watched as the Munich team followed up. And goal after goal after goal. The start was made by Thomas Müller, who volleyed the ball under the crossbar after a cross from Choupo-Moting in the six-yard box to make it 3-0 (53′). Six minutes later, Tel increased after a pass from Kane (61′). And the timing became tighter. Less than five minutes later, Müller scored again to make it 5-0. This time Goretzka prepared and the 34-year-old headed in (66′).
Bayern then retained their oppressive dominance. Fortunately for Köpenick, they no longer showed the same consistency as in the first 20 minutes after the break. The hosts themselves despaired of trying to somehow score at least their first goal after more than six hours. Until injury time. Yorbe Vertessen’s 1:5 at least ended FCU’s 387-minute goalless streak. Nevertheless, the final certainty remained – loudly sung by brave fans in the An der Alten Försterei stadium – that FCU would be fighting to stay in the league until the end.
Reactions to the game
Nenad Bjelica (coach 1. FC Union): “Every defeat hurts. No matter whether you lose 0:1 or 1:5 and no matter against which opponent. We have to live with that and try to do better in the next game. (. ..) The first half was okay from our side. The only difference we saw was the result because we didn’t take advantage of our chances and the opponent did (…) We have to keep working and improving be patient with our players.”
Christopher Trimmel (captain 1. FC Union): “The first half in particular wasn’t bad from us. (…) The second half was not enough at times. We have to take credit for that. But still: it happens in football . We have to classify this well. The only thing that matters is how we go into the next few weeks.”
Leon Goretzka (Bayern Munich): “We know exactly how unpleasant it can be here at the Alte Försterei. Accordingly, we were prepared for a tough fight, accepted it well and marched through it very confidently in the end.”
The voices in the audio
The game in the live ticker
Broadcast: rbb24, April 20, 2024, 9:45 p.m