Hartel levels to snatch point for Union Berlin
Bielefeld hold on to draw
Union Berlin showed further comeback qualities after last week’s draw in Nürnberg – this time managing a 1-1 draw at home to Arminia Bielefeld.
In front of another sold-out Stadion An der Alten Försterei, Union responded to the extra support with a great start. Controlling the first 30 minutes, the home side created at least four chances to break the deadlock. Stefan Ortega was alert to Kristian Pedersen’s shot, while Felix Kroos and Simon Hedlund came close for the Köpenick side.
However, Arminia Bielefeld weren’t afraid to offer a warning shot before the half-time break. Konstantin Kerschbaumer’s shot cannoned against the woodwork and offered some hope to the travelling fans from Nordrhein-Westfalen. Hope was eventually converted into a lead just after the restart when Patrick Weihrauch set up Andreas Voglsammer who buried past Jakob Busk from inside the box.
In the other goal, Ortega was enjoying a fine afternoon. He blocked from Hedlund twice, Damir Kreilach and Sebastian Polter, but Union’s desire and energy was rewarded when Marcel Hartel slammed home from a ricochet in the 55th minute in front of the Waldseite.
Fabian Schönheim almost completed the turnaround on the hour mark, but missed from close range. Kreilach hit the crossbar in the 75th minute, while Ortega turned Hartel’s shot on to the post as the game entered the final 10 minutes. The two teams shared the points in the end, with the Berliners perhaps the most frustrated.
“Of course we’re a little bit disappointed with just a draw,” said Keller. “We have practically opened up the goal because of stupid positional errors. We came back well and got a deserved equaliser. Of course, the draw at home is annoying because we had enough chances to win the game.”
League football is put on the back burner due to the forthcoming European Qualifiers for the 2018 World Cup, but Union’s select team features in a testimonial for Torsten Mattuschka and Karim Benyamina. The next league match is a trip to Fortuna Düsseldorf on Sunday September 10, with a 13:30 kick-off at the ESPRIT Arena.
