Marius Bülter joined 1. FC Union Berlin this summer from Magdeburg and the 26-year-old has made a good impression. He hit two goals against Borussia Dortmund — his first goals in the Bundesliga. Now, he’s looking to help Union ahead of the Bundesliga’s return against SC Freiburg on Saturday. Christian Arbeit meets the Union attacker to talk about his upbringing and late breakthrough.

CA: In the last few weeks, you have been asked a lot about your unusual history and football career. You are not as young as most people think, but already in your mid-20s. It was just last year you ended up in the 2.Bundesliga, and now in the Bundesliga. Can you still hear and tell this story, or does it annoy you already?

MB: No, it doesn’t annoy me. It’s quite nice also to talk about it because it is special and not something you see every day. I know that I had a lot of luck there and I’m proud of my career. That’s why I like to talk about it.

Okay, let’s do it then. You were born in Ibbenbüren. Where is that and what did you do as a kid?

It is between Münster and Saabrücken. However, for me this only my birthplace. I actually grew up in an even smaller village — Dreierwalde, which has about 2,000 inhabitants. There wasn’t much you could do expect play football with your buddies. That was the main thing to occupy us. As we got older, went to the bigger cities.

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You studied mechanical engineering — how did it come to that?

My dad also studied this and I was interested in mathematics anyway. At school, maths and sport were the subjects I enjoyed the most. Sure, you look at the studies which give you the best chance of a good job and salary. Mechanical engineering managed to fit that bill.

On top of that, did you always play?

In Rheine we trained three times per week, which was more like football as a hobby. The studies were exhausting, but anyone who studied knows that you’ve always got free time.

And then you went to Rödinghausen. How did that come about?

I attracted Rödinghausen’s attention when I played against them. They played in my league at the time before getting promoted to the Regionalliga. After that, they brought me into the club. It was an hour away from where I lived at the time, but since I had teammates from the same area, it was OK. I knew this was a well-managed club, the condition fits, and there was a sponsor behind it. It wasn’t a traditional club, but I was able to develop well there as a player.

Obviously the club had a knack for being discovered. You were top goalscorer for Rödinghausen and then the call came from Magdeburg at some point. What were you thinking then?

I was 25 at the time and I knew my contract was about to expire. I knew it was probably my last chance to become a pro footballer. At that time, my studies hadn’t finished yet, so the burden was quite high. I did my internship during this period, worked every day 6am-2pm, then trained, then the games at the weekend — the load was exceptionally high. But strangely, it worked out well on the pitch, so I knew clubs were interested. I knew early on that I’d be going to Magdeburg. The fact they were promoted was still a really cool thing.

Magdeburg has a huge history, a strong club with a great atmosphere in the stadium, where people are demanding things. Did you find the change easy?

At the beginning, it was a bit extreme. I didn’t know all that stuff, with the fans, the media, but I got used to it relatively quickly. Playing in stadiums like this, which were often always the case in the second division, gave me wings. I was finally where I wanted to be.

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After the relegation followed a long summer until we saw the moment it could work out. The interesting thing from the Berlin point of view was that you quickly positioned yourself when you vehemently said you wanted to play for Union. In the end, it took a while and an agreement was found where your contract was extended in Magdeburg, while you are here on loan. It feels like all three sides agreed on something which benefits everyone. Do you see it that way?

Yes, it was difficult for me, sure, as the topic went on all summer and it was hard to switch off even on holiday, as you were constantly looking at your mobile phone and hoping there was some news. Magdeburg were stubborn at the start and they didn’t negotiate. This became difficult for me too, of course, so I went public and said that I wanted to move as I wouldn’t have understand why if Magdeburg didn’t want to give me that chance. I also said it quite clearly and I also talked to everyone about it, and no one ever wondered why I do it or behave stupidly. Nobody said they couldn’t understand me. That's why I'm glad it worked out in the end, so eventually all three got what they wanted. Magdeburg hope to probably have me back sometime, which I don't necessarily hope. Union Berlin have the chance to buy me and I have the chance to play in the Bundesliga, so in the end I am responsible myself for whether Union will take the option at the end or not.

You had a pretty short break, or a relatively short one at least, given that Magdeburg's pre-season started earlier than ours. There you trained a bit and then with us. On the medical day, you got into the car together with Neven Subotic and eventually you got to know everyone. How do you approach the pre-season in such a new environment?

It's not that easy. It's true that I still had two weeks left in Magdeburg, but I personally wanted to use these two weeks to prepare myself for the day when the transfer happens. I have always believed in that. Sure, I could have also said to Magdeburg that I really wanted to move and then I don't want to train. Instead, I said my goodbyes and went through with it professionally, as I had already decided to prepare for the move and use the two weeks to get ready. So this was certainly not bad for me. Maybe I already had a little advantage and generally it was funny to see Neven Subotic like that, who you only knew from TV. You noticed quickly that he was like the rest. You are well received in the team, so this worked out great when everyone is mega nice. Of course you knew each other from the games before that we played against each other and that's why it wasn't very difficult. It was actually easy for me.

Would you say things have gone perfectly for you?

Sure, the first few weeks were pretty good, then I scored the two goals. After that it was pretty difficult. I didn't play one or two games that well, which I knew as well, but I also was aware that sometime this would happen as it is a completely different league again and then you'll have another one or two games where you don't play so well. But the important thing is that you don't bury your head in the sand and don't get too caught up in it; just continue working hard and you know the good games will come back again.