1. FC Union Berlin return to league business on Sunday 21 October (13:30) and face newly-promoted SC Paderborn at the Benteler-Arena.

Review: Last-ditch equaliser against Heidenheim

Goalkeeper Rafal Gikiewicz bailed out his teammates on the last matchday, where 1. FC Union Berlin had to wait until late stoppage time to get a point against 1. FC Heidenheim. Gikiewicz’s header preserved our unbeaten record in the 2.Bundesliga — the ninth game without a loss for Urs Fischer’s team in league competition. Union sit second in the table behind 1. FC Köln with Hamburg just behind on an inferior goal differential.

With 15 points from nine games, it has been an excellent start to life in the second division for Steffen Baumgart, a former player here at the Alte Försterei. Paderborn have one of the strongest attacks in the league with 19 goals — just Köln have hit the back of the net more than the team from Ost-Westfalen. Baumgart’s side lead the way on the best chances created, the most shots on goal and strikes from set-piece situations. Philipp Klement scored the winner from a dead-ball situation to beat Ingolstadt 2-1 on their last outing.

Record: 4-0 success in Paderborn last time out

1. FC Union Berlin and Paderborn have met 16 times overall — 12 in the 2.Bundesliga, four in 3.Liga — with the Köpenick club winning five times. Paderborn have a strong record against the Berliners, winning at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei on their last visit in 2015-16. However, at the Benteler-Arena, Union ran out 4-0 winners with a double from Bobby Wood and strikes from Damir Kreilach and Toni Leistner.

Personnel: Almost a clean bill of health

Fischer expressed his views on the personnel situation against Paderborn. Julian Ryerson appeared twice for Norway’s U21 side, whilst Marcel Hartel and Sebastian Andersson earned game time for their respective teams. All returned healthy, and the Swedish centre forward has been given time to rest following his return. “His condition is really good. Yesterday, he completed a large chunk of the training. He appeared for 60-70 minutes. His legs are good but he was a little bit tired from the travelling and getting to his hotel quite late on. He has not slept much. We slept in a little on Thursday morning, since we trained later.”

Meanwhile, Michael Parensen’s injury is not as serious as it first appeared last week. The 29-year-old is expected to join up with his teammates for full training next week. However, there is bad news for Marc Torrejon who has suffered a setback in his recovery. “His optimism isn’t broken though,” said Fischer who will have a full squad when both knocks are cleared up.

Tickets: Available in Paderborn

1. FC Union Berlin expect between 800 and 1000 at the Benteler-Arena on Sunday lunchtime. Supporters who are still interested in purchasing a ticket should get them from the cashiers at the Benteler-Arena in Paderborn on matchday.