Position
They would have liked a better return against Hamburg SV. However, they were not that unhappy with the result after the 0-0 draw against the newly promoted team last Sunday. "In the end, you have to be happy you’ve got a point," admitted captain Christopher Trimmel after a match where the visitors from Hamburg had more of the game, especially in the first half. Who knows how the clash would have turned out if Andrej Ilic had not failed to beat HSV keeper Daniel Heuer Fernandes from the penalty spot in the tenth minute.
Be that as it may, Union Berlin can certainly live with their start to the season. The capital city club is currently eleventh in the league, with just one point fewer than the Werkself. "We certainly have nothing to be ashamed of having seven points after five games," said assistant coach Sebastian Bönig, who deputised for head coach Steffen Baumgart on the sidelines against Hamburg. Baumgart received a one-match ban from the DFB Sports Court for unsporting conduct during the 4-3 away win in Frankfurt.
The win at Eintracht Frankfurt on matchday 4 was a thriller. After the visitors' early goal through Ilyas Ansah, Oliver Burke in particular produced an outstanding performance. The new signing from Werder Bremen scored three times to give the team from Köpenick a 4-1 lead. Eintracht only managed to reduce the deficit in the closing stages. After the 2-1 home win against VfB Stuttgart on matchday 1, the Berliners had clocked up their second victory against a team from the top third of the table. In between, however, there were also two defeats at Borussia Dortmund (0-3) and against TSG Hoffenheim (2-4). Union beat Regional League FC Gütersloh 5-0 in the first round of the DFB Pokal.
After a mixed preseason with poor results in friendlies, the situation is now looking very positive for the Irons. "Something’s coming together here," said Christopher Trimmel. "I think we've played quite well with the exception of the two defeats. You have to give us time, I'm not that unhappy."
Personnel
Even at the age of 38, Trimmel is still an absolute key player for the Irons. The Union legend has been at the club since 2014. As a right-back, Trimmel continues to perform his duties with the utmost reliability. The Austrian is set to make his 367th appearance for the Berliners on Saturday in Leverkusen. Diogo Leite, Leopold Querfeld and Danilho Doeki, who recently formed the back three in front of goalkeeper Frederik Rönnow, are also likely to be in contention for the game against the Werkself. Rani Khedira and Janik Haberer are first choices in midfield. Both have been consistent for Union over the years and they often work as a duo to create a compact central midfield.
In attack, Baumgart has relied on Oliver Burke and Ilyas Ansah on the flanks in the past three games, with Andrej Ilic playing in the centre of the attack. While the former Werder Bremen player Burke needed some time to settle in at his new club, Ansah hit the ground running. The Germany U21 international came from Bundesliga 2 club SC Paderborn 07 and he scored twice on his Bundesliga debut for the Irons in a 2-1 win against Stuttgart. After five games, the 1.97 metre tall striker now has four goals to his name. Scotsman Burke hit the jackpot with his three goals against Frankfurt - the first hat-trick of his professional career. "Oliver is slowly getting up to speed in Berlin, he kept his cool. That was very good," said Baumgart, praising the new signing. Andrej Ilic, Union's second-highest goalscorer last term with seven goals after Benedict Hollerbach (9), who moved on to Mainz 05, has so far failed to score in his role as a centre forward, but he has shone as a provider: The Serbia U21 international has set up five of Union's eight goals, making him the Irons top scorer and provider.
Steffen Baumgart will still have to manage without defender Andrik Markgraf (stress fracture) and striker Livan Burcu (foot injury) on Saturday.
Problems
This season - at least so far - everything has been a little different compared with previous years. The Irons were always considered to be particularly strong defensively. Now they have already conceded eleven goals in five games. Union have revealed gaps in their defence and made a number of individual mistakes. Although the Berliners are as solid as usual and have made the second highest number of challenges duels on average after Mainz 05, their completed duels rate (47.2 per cent) leaves a lot to be desired. Only FC Heidenheim have an even worse number. Union have recently struggled at home at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei. After a 4-2 defeat against TSG Hoffenheim, the team then picked up a lucky point against HSV last weekend. "The pressing wasn't good, something was missing," said captain Christopher Trimmel after the 0-0 draw, while assistant coach Sebastian Bönig also recognised: "We didn't have much of a grip on the game, we didn't have the energy and power."
Performers
But it is precisely that energy and power that characterises Union’s football. Passion, cohesion, intense sprints, great desire to run - that's all part of the Irons DNA. This season too. But a new strength has been added: scoring goals. Eight goals in five games - a very good haul by Union standards, partly due to the switch to a 3-4-3 system. On the other hand, new signings Oliver Burke and Ilyas Ansah have also made an impact. Both not only bring a lot of pace on the flanks, but also shine as goalscorers, scoring seven of the eight Union goals between them. They are often set up perfectly by central midfielders Rani Khedira and Janik Haberer as well as strike partner Andrej Ilic. Union Berlin don't need a lot of possession. The quick transition play and impressive effectiveness in finishing are trump cards for the Irons. In both the 2-1 win against Stuttgart and the 4-3 win at Eintracht Frankfurt, almost all the match stats in terms of possession, shots on goal, passes and crosses were favoured the opponents. But in the decisive statistic, the goals, Union were ahead in the end. Almost every counter-attack by the Berliners was successful against the Hessians. After the match at Eintracht, Steffen Baumgart said: "We deliberately wanted to go for the transition game because we knew that Frankfurt are a very good team with the ball." It is quite possible the Irons coach may adopt a similar tactic in Leverkusen.
