After three successive away matches, 1. FC Union Berlin returned to the Alte Försterei and welcomed the German champions Bayern Munich to Köpenick. Taiwo Awoniyi returned to his position up front, while Niko Gießelmann came back in at full-back and Andreas Luthe was restored as the number one. Bayern fielded a classically strong XI despite Julian Nagelsmann's absence from the dugout due to coronavirus. However, even with interim coach Dino Toppmüller on the bench, Bayern had the bit between their teeth. Having lost 0-5 at Borussia Mönchengladbach on Wednesday, the champions were out to do damage. Thomas Müller and Leroy Sane combined on seven minutes but the winger fired wide of the target as the floodgates opened in the opening passage of play. A penalty was awarded by referee Harm Osmers on 15 minutes against Paul Jaeckel - which Robert Lewandowski converted from 12 yards. On 23 minutes, Lewandowski fired home a free-kick from 18 yards out to give Bayern a second goal at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei. Union enjoyed a decent spell thereafter without pushing Manuel Neuer in the Bayern goal. Andreas Luthe made an excellent block from Lewandowski on 31 minutes as the Polish striker forced his way clear of the Union defence. Coman crossed for Müller on 33 minutes, a short flick-on gave Sane an empty to net give the champions a 3-0 lead. The home side cut the deficit with an excellent finish from Gießelmann, the left-back making his textbook charge into opposition territory. Straight after the restart, Becker fired past Manuel Neuer but the assistant referee called offside against the Dutchman on the stroke of the half-time break.
Urs Fischer's side returned from the tunnel and put in a second-half performance to be proud of. Union were strong for the 15 minutes before Coman's rasping drive put Bayern 4-1 ahead on the hour mark. Becker had caused problems in behind but Manuel Neuer was as alert as you'd expect from the German national team number one. Timo Baumgartl then joined the attack to cause problems for Nagelsmann's team but again Neuer was there. Despite the dominance from the home team, Frenchman Coman ran clear of the Union defence and finished off with a thumping strike. On 64 minutes, Urs Fischer freshened up his team with three substitutions - Behrens, Ryerson and Teuchert replaced Awoniyi, Trimmel and Grischa Prömel with an important UEFA Europa Conference League game on Thursday. Seconds after Behrens and Ryerson joined the action, the two combined to pull one back. The striker charged down the left-hand side, cutting the ball across and Ryerson finished off with an empty net in front of him. Andreas Voglsammer and Kevin Möhwald were handed the opportunity to try and drag Union closer to the visitors. But Thomas Müller scored a fifth goal of the day to send Bayern home with all three points in the bag. European business is back on the agenda for Union this Thursday as Urs Fischer's team take on Feyenorod at the Olympic Stadium in the fourth Group E match of the campaign.
Bayern Munich come to the Stadion An der Alten Försterei
Match preview
Following three successive matches on the road, 1. FC Union Berlin return to familiar territory on Saturday at 15:30, taking on German champions Bayern Munich.
The 10th game of the campaign and Union's third home meeting with Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga will go ahead with 16,509 fans at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei. The game goes ahead with 3G health and safety regulations in place — proof of vaccination, proof of recovery or a negative rapid/PCR test.
Review — The last match:
1. FC Union Berlin booked their place in Sunday's DFB Pokal last 16 draw with a 3-1 win at Waldhof Mannheim after 120 minutes. Patrick Glöckner's team knocked Eintracht Frankfurt out in Round 1 with a surprise 2-0 win at the Carl-Benz-Stadion, and the home side on Wednesday started all guns blazing. Alexander Rossipal fired home after four minutes as Union were immediately put on the back foot. A good combination between Sheraldo Becker and Andreas Voglsammer created an opportunity for Kevin Behrens to thump in the equaliser after 18 minutes. The match took on the nature of a classic cup tie with Union dominating more and more as the 90 minutes progressed and Mannheim ran out of energy. Despite missed chances, the game went to extra-time. Taiwo Awoniyi came off the bench to score after 94 minutes to essentially knock the stuffing out of Mannheim. Behrens scored late on to secure a place in the last 16 of the Cup for the first time in two seasons.
Bayern Munich — Opposition Report:
Julian Nagelsmann, Bayern Munich's head coach, won't be at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei on Saturday to watch the German champions look for their first victory in Köpenick with fans in the stadium. The league-leaders from Munich went out of the German Cup in dramatic fashion in midweek, losing 5-0 to Borussia Mönchengladbach. However, Nagelsmann's side have led the race for the title throughout the campaign with 22 points from nine games. Bayern are one point ahead of Borussia Dortmund and six points better off than Union who occupy fifth in the Bundesliga. Despite Nagelsmann's absence, Bayern ran out 4-0 winners last weekend in the Bundesliga at the Allianz Arena against Hoffenheim. Serge Gnabry, Robert Lewandowski, Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting and Kingsley Coman scored the goals — demonstrating the variability of Bayern's attacking and goalscoring options.
Bayern Munich — The coach's view:
"Difficult challenge against one of the best teams, if not the best. It's on us to bring our best performance. We did that well in Stuttgart and in phases in Mannheim. Certainly we need that over 90 mins. If not, very difficult," said Union coach Urs Fischer.
Personnel:
Urs Fischer told the press that Max Kruse left training and went to the clinic for further treatment. The coaching team are waiting on further information from the experts. Otherwise, Union have a complete squad to choose from.
