GThey returned from Israel in a good mood. Because her dream of wintering in international business is alive. The 1. FC Union Berlin team laid the foundation for this with a 1-0 win in the Conference League at Maccabi Haifa. Now it needs a success on December 9th at home against Slavia Prague to move into the knockout phase. “We wanted to have a final, we have that now. We’ll do everything we can to win at home, ”said striker Max Kruse after the game.
The narrow success documents the impressive strength of the former underdog from the capital, which can still be admired. In the Bundesliga, in which they appear on Sunday at Eintracht Frankfurt (3.30 p.m., in the sports ticker of WELT), the Berliners are also impressing in the third season after promotion in 2019. Union ranks fifth, eight points behind leaders FC Bayern, who has 28 points.
Only a few days ago, when it came to the derby against Hertha BSC in Berlin, which Union won 2-0, the club proved what sets it apart. Even in the third Bundesliga year, Union is still not able to set great highlights in the game, but the team is very structured. It only takes a few minutes of play to realize that the players always have a plan, a concept of how to perform. Union plays consistently, is willing and makes few mistakes.
With this, the club from the capital has not only gained respect in this country over the past two years, but also beyond the borders. In his Bundesliga column for the well-known English newspaper “Guardian”, Andy Brassell attested that the club had steadily improved in the recent past and that it was well positioned. He wrote about the “Kings of Berlin” after the Derby victory against Hertha and about “a cosmopolitan team with entrepreneurship and character”.
The coup with Haraguchi and Khedira
As far as the latter is concerned, some football professionals are often denied that they have the necessary character for the sometimes demanding challenges in the Bundesliga. At Union, so the impression, they hit the bull’s eye when it comes to selecting their staff.
When the club again signed more than ten players in the summer – as in the previous year – most of them free of transfer, many were amazed at the decision on Genki Haraguchi, who came from the second division side Hannover 96 and who owes his first division quality to date stayed, and fell on Rani Khedira. The brother of the 2014 world champion Sami was previously no longer the first choice at FC Augsburg. After a start-up phase, the duo is now in the midfield – and part of a stable framework.
Union Sports Director Oliver Ruhnert
Source: pa / Eibner-Presse / EIBNER / Sascha Walther
“Both are experienced Bundesliga players whose potential was known and easy to assess. We had no doubts about their willingness to perform and that they would find a suitable environment with us in order to bring their strengths to bear, ”said Oliver Ruhnert, Managing Director Sport, to WELT.
Impressive running values
Ruhnert, who has just turned 50, is highly regarded in the industry. In interaction with the scouts and analysts, he impresses with good personnel acquisition. Nico Gießelmann, for example, who came from second division Fortuna Düsseldorf in the summer of 2020, was not in good repute at the time either. He is now a fixture on the left. For example, when it comes to the mileage of all professionals in the 18 first division clubs, Gießelmann ranks second in the top 10 behind Manuel Prietl from Bielefeld, who previously ran an average of 12.31 km per game, with 11.99 km in second place – and Rani Khedira with 11th , 47 km in eighth place.
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A good nose for good staff – and above all the right ones – is unmistakable at Union. Ruhnert did not hesitate to contact the former national player Max Kruse a year and a half ago. The now 33-year-old had better value offers, but he gave Union the contract.
Since then, Kruse has not only attracted a lot of attention because of his presence in social networks, but also on the pitch. He makes the difference. He distributes the ball, has ideas and harmonizes perfectly with Taiwo Awoniyi, who is very accurate in his second year at Union – with eight goals he is third in the Bundesliga scorers list.
Even if the fifth place that Union is currently in would mean participation in the Europa League, they remain modest in Berlin. You are enjoying the moment and want to do everything you can to get as far as possible in three competitions – the league, the DFB-Pokal and the Conference League.
The work of Urs Fischer
“There are criteria by which our decisions are based, which from our point of view contain a fundamental probability of success. We do the things that we do with the conviction that we can be successful with them, “says Managing Director Ruhnert:” Of course you can never be sure whether it will actually work, so we are all the more pleased that it has worked out again . “
It is thanks to the good teamwork behind the scenes, between the players on the pitch – and also coach Urs Fischer. After Christian Streich, who has been head coach at SC Freiburg for almost years, the Swiss is the longest-serving coach. He has been in charge at Union for almost three and a half years.
Trainer Urs Fischer does a very good job at Union
Source: dpa / Andreas Gora
The 55-year-old, who led the club straight to promotion in his first year, appears very modest on the outside, very withdrawn. Fischer works conscientiously, detailed and committed. As a result, he and his team succeed, as Oliver Ruhnert puts it, “to give the team a stable framework and to give them a promising plan for every game”. Calmness and calmness as a club would fundamentally distinguish Union, which, in addition to sporting ambition, is an important success factor.
Would Fischer be able to work at Union for as long as Streich in Freiburg? “I don’t want to speculate about future scenarios,” says Ruhnert: “At the moment, everything fits together very well at Union and everyone is happy about that.”
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