Bundesliga: Union Berlin’s defense awaits a stress test against Borussia Dortmund

Fri 04.10.24 | 3:21 p.m. | From Jakob Lobach

With a home win against Dortmund, Union Berlin could overtake BVB in the table on Saturday (3:30 p.m.). The Borussians travel to Berlin with the wind at their backs, but the stable defense of their hosts gives them hope.

• There has never been a draw in twelve games between Union and BVB (three Union wins, nine Dortmund wins)
• With a win on Saturday (3:30 p.m.) the Köpenickers could overtake the Westphalians in the table
• After the 7-1 win against Glasgow, BVB comes to Berlin with the biggest Champions League victory in the club’s history behind them
• There will be a reunion with his former club for Union’s defender Tom Rothe, who was on loan from Dortmund, as well as for Dortmund’s Ryerson, who played for Union for a long time

Looking at this week, this question can be answered with a clear “outstanding”. With an impressive 7-1, Dortmund sent Celtic Glasgow back to Scotland in the Champions League on Tuesday evening. The biggest win in Dortmund’s Champions League history was only slightly marred by a muscle injury to three-time goalscorer Karim Adeyemi.

Overall, BVB has had a very solid, if not stumbling-free, start to the season. A prime example of this was the 4-2 home win in the small derby against VfL Bochum last weekend. After twenty particularly defensively adventurous to subterranean minutes, Dortmund were 0-2 behind. Striker Serhou Guirassy only shortened the score shortly before half-time before his team turned the game around in the second half – then greatly improved. After the brutal 5-1 defeat in Stuttgart a week earlier, another against Bochum would have made the start of the season a worrying one.

Jannik Schröder from the Dortmund fan magazine Schwatzgelb also speaks of “exhilarating football” on the one hand and of a “certain imbalance” on the other. The offense, led by the aforementioned Guirassy and Adeyemi, is what creates the rush, while the defense represents the imbalance. Nico Schlotterbeck, who is always prone to errors, and goalkeeper Gregor Kobel made mistakes against Bochum recently.

Overall, most Black and Yellow fans are “satisfied at the moment,” says Jannik Schröder. The mood is “cautiously positive,” he says, “but I think the last fan is not yet completely convinced that everything is going right.” Especially since the playful inconsistency at BVB has been perhaps the biggest constant in recent years. Not to forget that two constant personnel, Marco Reus and Mats Hummels, also said goodbye in the summer.

Together with the takeover by ex-player and new coach Nuri Sahin, this resulted in at least a mini-change that has an impact and is being discussed further. “For us, of course, there is the question of what the hierarchy in the team looks like,” says Schröder. Or more specifically: “Who is the new leader?” On paper, he has been called Emre Can since the summer of 2023. A captain “who is not entirely uncontroversial among the fans,” as Schröder says.

Nuri Sahin was also received with a lot of goodwill from fans, but is still under intensive observation: “He rightly announced at the beginning that we had to be patient,” says Schröder, “but experience shows that patience is difficult at Borussia Dortmund …”

The aforementioned Serhou Guirassy hardly demanded any patience from the Dortmund fans after his summer move from Stuttgart. Sure, with a knee injury he made them wait a bit for two game days. The French-born Guinean then promptly made effective amends with six goals in his first five games. “You can tell that Nuri Sahin relies on him as a classic striker and the game is heavily geared towards him,” Schröder also recognizes.

But the striker’s back and side men also put in a strong performance recently. Julian Brandt, for example, and of course Adeyemi, whose loss Dortmund now has to compensate for. How and, above all, with whom this will succeed will be shown on Saturday. Donyell Malen and Jamie Gittens are the most obvious replacement candidates with a view to the starting eleven.

And then of course there is an ex-Union player who is likely to be under special observation by his former supporters in the An der Alten Försterei stadium: Julian Ryerson. The Norwegian, who extended his contract with BVB by four years on Thursday, played 109 games for 1. FC Union between 2018 and 2022.

Bo Svensson (Union Berlin): “Dortmund are a top opponent. We didn’t need the game against Celtic to realize that. They are very, very well staffed individually and brought in great players in the summer. We need our very best performance to be able to keep up, But we’re really looking forward to the game.”

Nuri Sahin (Borussia Dortmund): “To concede three goals after five matchdays is extraordinary. They have very good stability and a coach of whom I have a very high opinion. You can see his signature. Add to that the stadium, add an away game. It’s in the overall package an unpleasant opponent waiting for us there.”

The three goals conceded in five league games mentioned by Sahin offer little reason for major changes, at least defensively. However, the absence of Tom Rothe, who was recently substituted injured, could throw a spanner in the works. The fact that striker Jordan is still waiting for his first goal should not stop coach Svensson from including him in the starting line-up again.

Union’s possible starting eleven: Rönnow – Doekhi, Vogt, Diogo Leite – Haberer, Schäfer, Khedira, Rothe – Jeong, Hollerbach – Jordan

The opponent expert’s tip: “In Berlin we always have a bit harder time against Union than at home, so Union’s chances aren’t that bad. But I still think it will be 3-1 for Dortmund.”

Editor’s tip: Köpenick’s defense, which has been so stable recently, remains stable, but cannot completely tame BVB’s current offensive appetite. Union loses 2-1 at home after a tough fight.

Broadcast: rbb 88.8, October 4th, 2024, 4:30 p.m