1. FC Union Berlin earned a superb 2-1 win at Ingolstadt on Monday evening, with goals from Sebastian Andersson and Akaki Gogia.
Urs Fischer's side maintained their unbeaten start to the 2.Bundesliga campaign with the win at the Audi-Sportpark.
Top-scorer Andersson scored from the penalty spot after 43 minutes before Gogia sealed the points with the decisive second goal for the Berliner and his third goal of the campaign. Ingolstadt substitute Stefan Kutschke scored from the penalty spot with around 10 minutes to go, but the visitors remained in control in the final stages.
With more than 500 supporters in the away block, coach Fischer made three changes to the side which defeated Holstein Kiel on Tuesday evening. Ken Reichel returned at left-back, while Felix Kroos and Marcel Hartel were restored to the starting front six. The Berliners set the tone right from the beginning, with several dangerous situations in the Ingolstadt box and with five corner kicks inside the first 24 minutes. Marco Knaller, between the sticks for the home side, was kept extremely busy but those chances began to lessen as the half wore on. A foul by Dario Lezcano on Florian Hübner was penalised by referee Bastian Dankert who pointed to the spot on 42 minutes. Andersson stepped up and finished off to give the travelling Union fans something to celebrate before the half-time interval.
Union stayed unchanged for the second half and continued to dominate the proceedings. Andersson was inches away from finishing off Gogia's cross on 58 minutes, but the ball skipped away at the last moment. Ingolstadt's newly-appointed coach Alexander Nouri used up all his substitutions within 20 second-half minutes, while Urs Fischer introduced Robert Zulj from the bench. Gogia's last action before coming off was to receive a layoff on the edge of the box and drill the ball into the bottom corner of the net. Ingolstadt were given a controversial penalty kick with 12 minutes left, which substitute Kutschke converted. However, the pressure wasn't quite as forthcoming as expected with Fischer's side keeping their composure and seeing out the game with a highly-professional performance.
1. FC Union Berlin returned to second place in the table behind 1. FC Köln and continue to boast the league's best defensive record. Fischer's side are in action again on Sunday October 7 at 13:30 against 1. FC Heidenheim at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei. Tickets are still available here for the next home match.
Union Berlin target victory at FC Ingolstadt
Match preview
After a superb win against Holstein Kiel on Tuesday, 1. FC Union Berlin are back in action on Monday night (October 1 / 20:30) against FC Ingolstadt at the Audi-Sportpark.
Review: Kiel win and changes at Ingolstadt
FC Ingolstadt parted ways with coach Stefan Leitl after a frustrating start to the 2.Bundesliga season. Leitl's side managed just five points from the first six weeks of the season - two draws and one win. However, sporting director Angelo Vier pulled the plug on his trainer and has recently brought in former Werder Bremen coach Alexander Nouri. The 39-year-old's first game in charge was at 1. FC Köln last week, with Ingolstadt going down 2-1 despite taking the lead the RheinEnergeStadion. Ingolstadt are second bottom of the 2.Bundesliga, just three points ahead of basement club MSV Duisburg.
Meanwhile, 1. FC Union Berlin came out of matchday 7 with three valuable points after two late goals from Grischa Prömel and Sebastian Polter against Holstein Kiel. The home win brought Union ahead of the chasing pack and into second position going into this weekend of football. After 1. FC Köln's win at Arminia Bielefeld on Friday, Union will be out to close the gap at the top to three.
Record: Positive results, 'record' goal in Ingolstadt
Former Union player Silvio boasts a claim to fame - his goal against Ingolstadt is the only time an Union player has won the "Goal of the Month" prize.
The overall record points to an even affair on Monday. Union and Ingolstadt have played out seven draws with three wins for either team. Last season, Union Berlin kicked off the campaign in Bavaria and ran out 1-0 winners thanks to a superb goal from Christopher Trimmel. However, Schanzer turned that around at the Alte Försterei in the reverse fixture, winning 2-1.
"Preparing for Ingolstadt wasn't easy. They have a new coach, new style and new ideas," said head coach Urs Fischer at the pre-match press conference. "We only have the game against 1. FC Köln as a starting point, and whether or not Nouri sticks with that remains to be seen. But first and foremost, in Ingolstadt we want to impose our way of playing, our principles on our opponents. We expect another tight game, hopefully with a better end result for us."
Ticket information: Still available for away end
Around 500 supporters have already purchased tickets for the away match on Monday night. There will be tickets available at cashiers at the Audi-Sportpark on matchday.
