This was Union’s 100^th Bundesliga game at home. Their 200^th in the league altogether. With it they guaranteed their place in the top flight for another year, and on the evidence of today, few would argue that they hadn’t brought some entertainment to the old place.

For no-one had ever seen anything like it. The first half of Union’s 4-4 draw against VfL Stuttgart was the astonishing, breathless, the wildest ride you’ve ever been on. 

It started almost from the off. All the signs were there, after all. Back in the starting eleven for the first time since Bremen, back before Christmas, Tom Rothe had a point to prove, and you could see it as he went up into his first challenge with Enzo Millot, missing the header, but refusing to back down and winning the ball on the floor instead. 

But this was never going to be about a rearguard action. They couldn’t have started this game any better. 

Christopher Trimmel, celebrating his new contract at the club, hit his first corner high and swirling towards the head of Danilho Doekhi who planted it goalwards, only to be cleared off the line. But it mattered little, for Andrej Ilic was there, his poachers’ instincts twitching, and he stabbed home from a couple of metres out. One nil.

Ilic was immediately back, defending a corner, but was the first to react as the ball was cleared, hitting a glorious long pass the way of Benedict Hollerbach who needed a barge to knock him off chasing it towards goal. 

The pace was frenetic, and suddenly Ermidin Demirović was free, past the last man, and bearing down on Frederik Rönnow’s goal. He rounded the keeper but put too much on the ball and had to face the jeers of the Waldseite as it rolled harmlessly out and away for a goal kick.

Hollerbach, himself returning to the starting line-up, was on fire, and after his next darting run, Ilic was only stopped from adding to his first by a well-timed lunge from Leonidas Stergiou, who risked everything on the tackle. Julian Chabot got a yellow card for bringing him down after 17 minutes, his last option as Hollerbach burst up the left-hand side. But if the foul was somewhat necessary, it still had its consequences, because within moments of that it would be two nil.

Again, Trimmel stood over the dead ball, and whipped it into the box. Leopold Querfeld was in there this time, helping it along towards goal where Diogo Leite headed it past Alexander Nübel with a flourish, scoring his first goal of the season. 

If it seemed things could grow little wilder, suddenly Stuttgart were back in it, as Deniz Undav picked up the ball, took a touch, and drove it past the diving right hand of Rönnow, just inside the left-hand post, a superb strike, to make it 2-1 after only 23 minutes. 

Roused, Stuttgart attacked again, Andras Schäfer tackling Chris Führich superbly, as did Querfeld on Undav straight after. One sliding, one stood up; both in the box. Both impeccable.

But then Millot picked up the ball in a similar position to that from which Undav had scored from. He too hit it impeccably into the same spot, giving Rönnow no chance as he flew, again, to his right. Only half an hour had been played, and it was 2-2.

Stuttgart had more chances, a free kick crashed into the wall from 25 yards, before Undav bent another one just past the top corner. But that was nothing. If Undav and Millot’s goals were superb, they would be bettered.

Union advanced, and Leopold Querfeld picked up the ball, 30 yards from goal. He hit it like a rocket into the top corner, the ball barely moving through the air, screaming all the way in until it dipped at the very last under the bar. 3-2.

It was breathless, you couldn’t take your eyes off the pitch. There was still time for Angelo Stiller to hit another one that took a wonderful stop from Rönnow, diving to his left, palming the ball away as he went. But Stuttgart drew level again after another free kick, this one hit into the box where Chabot met it with a rising header from near the penalty spot.

As if that wasn’t enough, Führich would make it 4-3 for the guests before the half was up. No-one could believe their eyes.

Union countered, of course, and with a minute remaining of time added on Demirović brought down Leite. Trimmel stood over the free kick as everyone pushed and shoved their way around the box. He bent it in again, to where Ilic again appeared amongst the chaos to round off the wildest half of football anyone here could remember seeing. 

It was 4-4 at the break, the first time in Bundesliga history such a thing had happened.  

Steffen Baumgart sent his players out unchanged for the second half, the ground still shaking from the previous 45 minutes. And immediately Stuttgart tried to get on the front foot, Trimmel doing well to stop Führich on the left wing, Schäfer chipping in with a solid tackle on Stiller.

Hollerbach’s chipped cross then dropped just too high for the onrushing Rothe, coming up the left into the box, before Rönnow had to clear ahead of Demirović, rushing out of his box. Rothe then flicked a header, nudging the ball out of Undav’s pass as the German international loomed.

If the game could hardly live up to the spectacle of the first half – and it surely couldn’t, as both coaches made sure to add a little more stability to the chaos at the break - still it bristled, it flickered, and still there were chances. Ilic and Hollerbach showed another side to their burgeoning partnership as the former flicked a beautiful ball the latter’s way; his shot from the edge of the box flying just over the bar with 55 minutes played. Ilic headed another set-piece from Trimmel over the bar.

With an hour played, Stuttgart came back into the ascendancy. Querfeld stopped Stiller in his tracks before he and Leite teamed up dispossess Millot as the ball bobbled about the box at his feet. Leite then stopped the same man in his tracks again as he tried to cut back inside from the byline. Chabot headed over. Rönnow came out to claim a ball Stergiou had run 35 yards to try and catch up with as it sailed into the Union box.

Reacting, Baumgart made his first change with 20 minutes to play, bringing László Bénes on for Haberer, but it was his midfield partner, Khedira, who made the next vital challenge, sliding precisely in on Stergiou. Leite hoicked Führich’s half volley away, after Rönnow had punched another deep ball away.

Again, Hollerbach came close soon after, his left-footed shot taking a big deflection and going out for a corner. He was then unfortunate as he tried to get Bénes’ sharp little cut-back under control at the near post. Marin Ljubičić and Tim Skarke had been ready to come on for some minutes already though by that point, ultimately replacing Hollerbach and the double goalscorer, Ilic with seven minutes of normal time remaining, and the scores still level.  

Skarke flashed wide, aiming for the back post, from the left soon after his arrival. Ramin Hendricks then got booked for a foul on Ljubičić following Schäfers delightful tackle, turn and ball up the line, leading to a free kick that Querfeld headed just over.

It was Schäfer’s last touch, as Lucas Tousart took his place with two minutes added on already being played.

Jeltsch lofted a final volley goalwards, but Rönnow held it in his hands and dropped to floor as the final whistle blew. The madness was over, the fans would stay for an eternity, and Union were guaranteed to play in the Bundesliga for another season.

"That was obviously an extremely nerve-wracking game. I'm just glad that we managed to get over the line in the end.’ He commented on his spectacular goal with a smile: ‘You sometimes try shots like that in training for fun – the fact that it worked out so perfectly today and that I was able to help the team is obviously a wonderful feeling."

"A game like today's is actually inexplicable – you probably only experience something like that once in a lifetime. But the important thing is that we came back and never let ourselves get discouraged despite the setbacks. It's hugely important for the whole club that we were able to secure our place in the league ahead of schedule. Nevertheless, we don't want to let up now and want to make the final stretch of the season as successful as possible."

"We've put together a run that has seen us achieve our goal four games before the end of the season: staying up. The fact that we'll be playing in the Bundesliga again next season makes us very proud at this moment. Of course, I often shook my head in disbelief in the first half – with so many extraordinary goals. But that's exactly what fits in with this crazy day."