Union Berlin looked to pick up three points at 18th-placed VfB Stuttgart on Saturday, as they continue to fight at the top of the Bundesliga. Heading into this fixture, Union were undefeated in their previous seven games against Stuttgart in all competitions.
UNB: Grill; Leite, Knoche, Doekhi; Roussillon, Haberer, Khedira, Laidouni, Trimmel; Becker, Behrens
STU: Bredlow; Ito, Zagadou, Mavropanos, Anton; Millot, Endo, Haraguchi; Tomas, Perea, Vagnoman
The first half was very disputed for both teams, and Stuttgart even had a goal disallowed after a clear handball. Despite 22 Bundesliga away games without a win, VfB Stuttgart showed their potential during most of the first half and looked likely to take the lead.
Berlin did not cause much trouble for Fabian Bredlow, who was only called into action a few times in the opening half. At the other end of the pitch, Lennart Grill made a huge mistake in the 33rd minute when he tried to clear the ball on the left edge of his box, but his clearance found Juan Perea. The Colombian striker easily tucked the ball into the net, but unfortunately for him, the goal was correctly disallowed after a VAR review for handball.
After half-time, Union Berlin started to combine well and created multiple chances, and it was Sheraldo Becker who opened the scoring with a great header after a marvellous assist from Jerome Roussillon in the 51st minute. Union didn’t have to wait too long to take advantage of Stuttgart’s defensive distractions once again, and in the 65th minute, Behrens provided the second goal after a massive mistake by Anton. It was initially called offside, however the VAR check overturned this decision.
Stuttgart’s defensive nightmare did not end there. Three minutes later, former Union Berlin player Genki Haraguchi conceded an own goal trying to clear a cross from Kevin Behrens. Berlin had more chances to keep punishing the side from Stadtkreis, but some effective defensive actions from the visitors prevented a fourth goal.
Union Berlin secured all three points and the club now wait for the Bayern Munich v Borussia Dortmund clash later this afternoon. They’ll be keen to see how Dortmund get on, as their next Bundesliga fixture comes in the form of an away day at the Signal Iduna Park. On the other hand, Stuttgart will face VfL Bochum 1848 in their next match, which is going to be a challenging game between two teams fighting to get out and stay away from the relegation zone.
Leave a Reply