[FM20] Rising Above The Past - An 1. FC Union Berlin Journey

A pretty devastating month of results. A reaction is absolutely necessary now.

Tough to swallow but this is the life in the Bundesliga, need to forget about these results and pick up some points in the next fixures.

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Peter Huth | BZ Sports Editor | November 2019

Following a few weeks that were dominated by news about BFC Dynamo, November sees Union play their first Bundesliga derby against that other team from Berlin: Hertha BSC. The rivalry between Hertha and Union Berlin is one with a very special background story; it actually started as a friendship. Want to find out the origin of this rivalry before Saturday’s clash? Find out below in BZ’s Berlin Derby Special!

Apart from the past few weeks, FCU’s rivalry with Die Alte Dame has in recent years been stronger than the rivalry with BFC Dynamo, which had faded away slowly since Dynamo’s demise. Though the hatred towards Hertha is big nowadays, Union used to have a rather friendly relationship with the club from West-Berlin.

Right after German reunification the two clubs had a historic friendly in the Olympiastadion – the home ground of Hertha BSC (see the photo at the top of this article). The friendly saw both fan bases sit mixed throughout the stadium. This led to no problems at all, and the fans even chanted together about their newly reunited country. Club officials hoped this would be the start of a friendship that would unite two sides of a formerly divided city.

Union and Hertha then met regularly in more friendlies over the next few seasons, with FCU winning five ties and BSC winning six. However, the amicable bond between Hertha and Union started to crumble when the teams began facing each other competitively, as Union Berlin were promoted to the 2. Bundesliga, and Hertha were relegated to that same league in the 2009/2010 season.

The first competitive meeting between the two Berliner clubs took place in September of 2010. During that match, which took place in Union’s An der alten Försterei, the stadium announcer abused Hertha BSC and its players on multiple occasions. The first indications that a once-historic friendship was turning into a cross-city rivalry.

Both teams were still in the 2. Bundesliga a year later, and when the press interviewed lifelong Unioner Christopher Quiring after the club’s match against their West-Berlin counterparts, he said the following about Hertha and its fans: “They cheer in our stadium. That makes me puke! […] When the Wessis cheer in our stadium, I get sick.” Wessis being a derogatory term for people from West-Germany.

After four competitive fixtures spread over two seasons, Union had won once, Hertha had won once and two times, there was no winner (see picture below). This Saturday, both teams thus have the chance to break this balance, and show who can truly call itself the pride of Berlin.



Representatives of both teams have already started the mind games associated with a derby like this one. Eccentric Union club president Dirk Zingler has said that “Hertha are a team of Western elites, whereas we are a true working class team that values hard work and discipline. On Saturday, we will show that and beat Hertha.”

Hertha trainer Bruno Labbadia responded by saying “I think he (Dirk Zingler) lives in the past. We are not living in a time where Berlin is divided in two anymore, we are all citizens of Berlin. In a few days, we will show we are the best team in the city.” Urs Fischer, manager of Union, has refused to be drawn into the discussion, saying that “I don’t care about pre-match antics, I will let football do the talking.”

The decor for another hotly-contested Berlin Derby is set. We at BZ look forward to the first-ever Bundesliga clash between these two teams!

Source for infographic and quote about Wessis: Wikipedia

If I want to make friends, I go to the bar. This is football, goddamnit

Interesting to read about how the rivalry between the two clubs has developed in the last decade or so. It certainly adds an extra element to clashes between the two - which Berlin club will claim the bragging rights of the city?!

Berlin was divided and it still has some problems between the two sides of the "wall", perfect way of settling these problems is on the pitch!

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Stefan Grünwald | November 2019

It’s been a difficult month for me and my dad. Not only were we confronted with difficult times from our past, but we also saw Union lose four straight matches. After a strong start, we were sitting only three points above the relegation zone. Yesterday, the 2nd of November, was an ideal day to change that that: we faced arch rivals Hertha BSC at our own stadium. Hertha were in sixteenth before the match, so a win here could be critical in our bid to survive.

My dad hadn’t attended any of Union’s four matches in October, which we all lost. He called me yesterday, late at night, saying “I’ll probably regret not going to tomorrow’s match. It might be the only Bundesliga match we play against those Wessis at our own ground, so meet me at the station at 1 tomorrow.” I was glad to hear him sound so enthusiastic, and have him back at my side in the stadium. Maybe he brought luck to Union, and would help us win.

Like we agreed, we met at Köpenick’s S-Bahn station at 1 pm. He bought a Currywurst at his favourite kiosk, and ate it on our way to the stadium. I gave him Union’s starting eleven once we had reached the stadium: “unchanged from last match, dad. Andersson up top again.” “That’s probably for the best, changing anything before such a big match can only backfire. Urs Fischer knows what’s doing better than us,” he replied. I didn’t agree, but kept it to myself. Wisdom probably comes with age, I thought.

From outside the stadium, we could already hear the fans chanting “oh Köpenick du bist wunderschön,” a favourite of me and my dad as Köpenick locals. It indicates the pride Unioner have for their part of Berlin. They see it as a town in and of itself, instead of just a neighbourhood within Berlin. This is totally different than Hertha’s attitude; they see themselves as the club of the whole of Berlin. That’s probably why our chant about Köpenick was sung so passionately yesterday. To show those Hertha-fans we are different.

Just before the match started, the ultras rolled out a beautiful banner that showed the skyline of Köpenick. Behind that, flares were lit. A banner read “today, we will light up Köpenick.” Our players seemed to have understood that message loud and clear. After only eight minutes, Robert Andrich scored the 1-0 for us after a beautiful shot from outside the box.

The stadium speaker shouted “Goal by our number 30, Robert Andrich!” “Fussballgott!” (football god) the fans shouted back at him in unison. This is how every goal is celebrated; every player is a football god here at Union. After that, the stadium speaker had one more sentence the fans had to finish: “Und niemals vergessen…” “…Eisern Union! Eisern Union! Eisern Union!” they replied. I think I had never heard such a loud rendition of our famous battle cry as that moment.

For the remainder of the first half, the entire stadium was bouncing. All 22.000 fans seemed to join every chant. This spurred on our players, who managed to produce a controlling performance. The first half ended 1-0. “I’m so glad I’m back home,” my dad said during half-time. “I’ve never seen our fans produce this much noise. It’s unreal!”

Quickly after half time, Sebastian Andersson scored our second of the game as he nodded the ball behind Hertha keeper Jarstein after a perfect cross by right-back Julian Ryerson. Six minutes later, Akaki Gogia converted a free kick, giving us an unprecedented 3-0 lead. An der alten Försterei erupted, with some Unioner starting anti-West chants and taunting the away fans. They responded by trying to break down the plexiglass between them and the home fans, but luckily some riot police – out of a total 1100(!) policemen assigned to the derby – managed to intervene.

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Six more minutes after the 3-0, a free kick rebounded off of Jarstein and fell straight onto the left foot of Andersson, who had no hesitation and scored, giving Union a 4-0 lead. My dad was even more ecstatic than me, and started hugging people around us on the terraces. He turned to me and said: “I’m never missing another Union match again, lad. It seems they need me in the stadium!”

Although Hertha scored a late 4-1, the party at An der alten Försterei continued as if nothing had happened. The fans started chanting “oh Köpenick du bist wunderschön” again after the final whistle had sounded, and me and my father left the stadium with big smiles. Three points against our cross-city rivals. Not only that, the Union players had also shown they could handle the pressure laid on them by the media after a period of four losses. Now, it is critical to bring that confidence into the next games. Luckily, Union have my dad in the stands as their talisman.

Truly a moment that will be always in the hearts of the fans! Memorable win!

After a difficult month on and off the pitch, that results will certainly lift spirits. A performance of real class.

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Union Communications Team | November 2019

With Union dropping to fourteenth place after a good start, November was a month in which our boys had to show they were capable of performing under pressure. Four difficult but high-profile matches were on the menu in this month, and you can read all about them below!



The first match Union played was probably the pick of the bunch: the Berlin Derby. Though FCU had not impressed in any of their previous four games, there was plenty of confidence this would be the turn-around for Urs Fischer’s men. They couldn’t have been more right.

The first sign it was going to be a great afternoon came early in the match, as Robert Andrich – former Hertha-player – scored a beauty of a long-shot in the eighth minute. After a quiet rest of the first half, the second half provided more entertainment for the Union fans – and more heartbreak for the other side of the city. Union expanded their lead to 4-0 in the space of 12 minutes, and had An der Alten Försterei rocking.

A consolation goal by Hertha after 68 minutes did not make our defenders nervous, as they managed to prevent any more Hertha goals in the remainder of the match, meaning Union beat their cross-city rivals 4-1. A superb result to kick off November, and give FCU some breathing space after a weak series of results.



A week later, Union travelled to Mainz. In the Opel Arena, Urs Fischer’s team faced the surprising numbers five of the Bundesliga: FSV Mainz. The only change our trainer made to his side was a forced one: the injured Robert Andrich – who had scored the 1-0 against Hertha – was replaced by veteran midfielder Christian Gentner.

Though Fischer fielded the same eleven that humiliated Hertha the week before, this match did not start as well as that one. Mainz had the upper hand for most of the first half, and finally managed to break the deadlock in the 37th minute: Dutchman Jeremiah St. Juste beat our goalie Gikiewicz from outside the box with a powerful shot.

After half-time, a more aggressive and determined Union emerged. This aggressivity was exemplified by Manuel Schmiedebach, who gave it his all to cut out a potentially dangerous Mainz pass into Union’s half. This set in motion an incisive counter-attack which was eventually rounded off by left-winger Marius Bülter who thus equalised for Union.

Union’s enthusiasm then slowly faded away, and they allowed Mainz to regain their one-goal lead. Supersub Anthony Ujah – playing against his old club – then turned the match around once again only a couple of minutes later by equalising for Union. In the 83rd minute, Union completed their heroic comeback when set-piece specialist Akaki Gogia found the head of Marvin Friedrich with an excellent free kick, who then headed home the 2-3 for Union. A dramatic late winner that saw Union pick up their first three points away from home!



With two consecutive wins under their belt, Union faced Borussia Mönchengladbach with confidence. Urs Fischer again changed little to his formation, but did give Anthony Ujah the nod over Sebastian Andersson. The two are in fine form, and Fischer seems to have settled for neither of them as his first striker, instead opting to rotate.

Though Gladbach have a wage bill three times the size of Union’s, it was the Köpenick side that opened the scoring after only five minutes: Anthony Ujah repaid his manager’s faith in him by rounding off a ball that had rebounded off the crossbar.

After about half an hour of football, Borussia equalised through former wonderkid Breel Embolo. However, the side from the Ruhr area could only enjoy their lead for a measly two minutes, as Ujah doubled his tally and gave Union the lead again with a powerful strike. This proved to be the last goal of the first half, and Union left the pitch with a 2-1 lead.

Just when our fans thought the three points were safe and sound, Embolo equalised for a Gladbach that had gone on the offensive. Eight minutes later, Union’s hopes of a third win in a row were shattered by a belter from distance by Gladbach right-back Stefan Lainer: 2-3 for Borussia. Ujah seemed to rescue a point for FCU deep in added time, but his third goal of the game was annulled by VAR. With this win, Gladbach and Union had now both picked up 16 points from 12 Bundesliga matches.



The last match for Union in November was another tough one: an fixture away from home against Schalke 04. The team from Gelsenkirchen were in fifth before the match, but that did not seem to stop FCU from going on the offensive early on: after only two minutes, Union went forward with a lot of bodies after regaining possession in midfield, and Anthony Ujah rounded off this quick counter, giving Union an early lead with his seventh goal of the season.

Not long after that goal, Schalke replied with an incisive counter of their own, with Belgian striker Benito Raman coolly rounding it off: 1-1. After that, not a lot happened until a few minutes before half-time, when FCU scored from probably their best attack all season. The attack started with our goalkeeper Gikiewicz, and, after a series of passes, was eventually rounded off by who else than Anthony Ujah.

Union then tried to control the match, but constant pressure from Schalke eventually led to the home team equalizing, fifteen minutes before full-time. A point would still be a good result for Union, but our pride did not seem satisfied with anything less than three points, and went on the attack again. These efforts were rewarded, as Ujah completed his hat-trick in the 82nd minute, giving Union a late 3-2 lead.

However, two stoppage-time Schalke goals meant FCU did not go home with three points, but rather with zero. This was second time in a row the team had given away a one-goal lead late on in a match. Urs Fischer was frustrated in his post-match interview, saying that “we really need to learn how to protect a lead. We have not shown yet that we are professional enough to avoid relegation, and we absolutely need to start doing that soon.”

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With six points from four difficult matches, November saw Union extend their lead over numbers sixteen Frankfurt to seven points. On the face of it, a good month. However, the month could have been even better for Union, were it not for the high number of goals that FCU conceded, many late on in the match. This has been a problem for Union of late: the team has the worst defense in the league, but also the fifth-best attack.

Union certainly weren't shy in-front of goal this month but unfortunately weren't tight enough at the back on occasions. The loss against Schalke must have been very difficult to take given the position Union were in going into the latter stages of the game. An encouraging month on the whole though.

Good month for the team and one thing is sure - Union plays some exciting football - 20 goals in the last 4 matches - 10 in each goal is spectacle!

Quite a crazy month their. Scoring for fun but also conceding a worrying amount in all honesty. But you are moving further from the relegation zone and that is always a good thing.

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Rainer Holzschuh | kicker Editor-in-Chief | November 2019

Bundesliga newcomers 1. FC Union Berlin have two strikers. One has as many goals as Robert Lewandowski this season, the other has as many as Timo Werner and cross-city rivals Hertha BSC combined. The former goes by the name of Sebastian Andersson (28), who joined the Köpenick outfit for free from 1. FC Kaiserslautern. The latter is Anthony Ujah (29), who joined the club this summer from 1. FSV Mainz for 2 million euros. Today, we sit down with both of these prolific strikers in an exclusive double interview.

RH (Rainer Holzschuh): Welcome Anthony and Sebastian, thank you for taking the time to sit down with kicker. Anthony, what made you choose to join Union this summer despite Sebastian Andersson – who was instrumental to Union’s promotion – already being at the club?

AU (Anthony Ujah): “No problem! I like a challenge and I was looking for a new adventure after being at Mainz for two years, and herr Zingler (Union president) convinced me that his club was the place where I could find that. So I was convinced to join this club despite knowing that I would not start every game. At the beginning of the season, I felt my playing time was lower than expected, even as second striker, so I said something about it to the manager. In the playing time he gave me after that talk, I think I proved myself to be worthy of starting more games!”

RH: Sebastian, Anthony has scored six goals in three games, and seems to have taken over your place of starting striker despite you also being in good form. How have you experienced the past few weeks?

SA (Sebastian Andersson): “Of course, it’s never nice to see yourself lose your place in the starting eleven, but I know that I have temporarily lost my position not because I’m playing badly, but because Anthony is simply too good right now. And as his teammate, it pleases me to see him do so well. Naturally, as a sportsman, I hope to regain my starting position soon!”

RH: Wouldn’t you prefer your manager, Urs Fischer, to play with two strikers so you could both start?

SA: “I’m not used to playing in a two-striker system like 4-4-2, and I think that the formation that we currently play in is the best fit for our players and playing style. If we changed to a two-striker system, other players would have to be sacrificed as well. The fact that you even ask this question just shows how much quality and squad depth we have!”

AU: “I feel the same about that as you, Seb: I’ve also never played in such a system. Also, the competition we have with each other here only makes us better. I’d say that we wouldn’t have scored a combined fourteen goals in thirteen matches together if we both played at different teams.”

RH: Anthony, you’re new at Union. How have your first months at the club been?

AU: “In one word: great. The club is a very tight-knit community of fans, players and club officials. It’s a lot more family-like than any club I’ve played it. That makes you feel like you’re part of something bigger than yourself, and it makes you more motivated to run a few meters more, or use a bit more muscle during duels. I think that’s what makes Union unique, and it’s why I think we will stay up this season.”

RH: Union have so far collected sixteen points from thirteen matches, more than most would’ve expected, but you could have picked up many more points was it not for the team’s leaky defence. Is that frustrating?

SA: “Frustrating is probably not what I would call it, but it is not nice of course. On the other hand, I don’t think we would have been able to score as many goals as we did if we did not play this attacking. So, the problems we have in defence are a result of our attacking style of play. In my opinion, it’s better to win 4-3 than 1-0, because that also means Anthony and I can score more goals!”

AU: “Absolutely, I agree with Seb there. As long as we keep scoring enough goals, I don’t see why the amount of goals we concede is a problem. Although, it is annoying that we concede many of those goals so late on in matches. But that’s not a mentality problem. I think it has more to do with the fact we play such intensive football, and are often tired near the end of matches. We are working on that with the club’s fitness trainers, so I hope we can show improvements in that regard soon.”

RH: I’d like to thank you for your time Anthony and Sebastian, it’s been a pleasure talking to you! Good luck in the rest of this season!

That last month was very, very promising in your hunt for survival. Ujah seems to be spearheading that move away with some terrific performances!