Even the players are finding it difficult to comprehend Union Berlin’s incredible season.
Rani Khedira, a midfielder for Union, described the 2-1 Bundesliga victory over Leipzig on Saturday as “a little weird.”
Union, which was promoted for the first time in 2019, has already met its season goal of 40 points to guarantee its survival and status in the league for a fifth season. There are 14 more games to play.
Nobody could have predicted this development, Khedira remarked. We sat together before the season, and it soon became clear to everyone that we wanted to reach 40 points again as soon as possible since we are aware of how challenging the Bundesliga is.
Despite having little resources, Union is only one point behind Bayern Munich, the 10-time defending champion, in second place after winning all of its games at the beginning of the year.
After the victory in Leipzig, Union coach Urs Fischer remarked, “The crazy continues.”
It was the team’s fifth straight 2-1 league victory over Leipzig, snapping the hosts’ 18-game winning streak overall.
When he mentioned the team’s point total, Fischer mirrored Khedira, who took over as captain for the rested Christopher Trimmel.
The Swiss coach remarked, “It’s even more bizarre than it was before the game.” “What should I say about forty-two points in the twentieth round?”
After winning the German Cup the previous year, Leipzig, supported and controlled by energy drink tycoon Red Bull, was considered a legitimate title contender. Leipzig, however, now trails Bayern by seven points after the defeat to Union, a team owned by its 49,000 members.
It was the fourth of Union’s six games this season that it came back to win after trailing by a goal.
“We’re not exactly sure how to change the course of games like these. The younger brother of former Germany player Sami Khedira, Khedira, stated, “I believe it’s just a simply incredible morale. It wasn’t a nice or deserving victory, but it was a victory for morale. And in my opinion, that is what unites this group.
Union also overcame a deficit to defeat Wolfsburg 2-1 on February 1 and advance to the quarterfinals of the German Cup.
Union made the most of the prolonged winter break in the Bundesliga. The team’s demanding schedule took a toll on it in November as it gave up 11 goals in three losses. Union had had the top defense in the league, allowing only nine goals in 12 games.
While the players rested, Union general manager Oliver Ruhnert worked on bolsters, bringing in French defender Jerome Roussillon from Wolfsburg to make up for the departures of Julian Ryerson and Genki Haraguchi, Tunisian midfielder Assa Ladouni from Ferencvaros, and Croatia fullback Josip Juranovi from Celtic.
The team’s successful start to the year has included contributions from all three of the newcomers.
Union, the only side in the league to have competed in the DDR-Oberliga, East Germany’s Bundesliga equivalent, set a record by winning five straight games in the Bundesliga.
On Thursday, the team will travel to Ajax in the Europa League semifinals. Union is participating in the competition’s knockout rounds for the first time.
After Saturday’s victory, Lothar Matthäus, a former West Germany captain and TV commentator, was effusive in his praise.
“We’d like to discuss Union’s recent performances as well as the championship. This season, Union is still involved in three competitions. “Whether you support Union or not, it’s everything for a team like Union that was promoted four years ago. It deserves the highest praise from all soccer fans,” Matthäus remarked.
“In such matches, with such supporters, and with this kind of thinking, they play games. They work soccer as well as they play it, and that is a strength of Union. They cooperate with one another, which explains why they are successful.
