After the match-free weekend, it's back to business next Sunday for the women's team of 1. FC Union Berlin on the sixth day of the Regionalliga Nordost season. Union will welcome SFC Stern 1900 to Dörpfeldstraße in the next Berlin derby. Kick-off is at 14:00.

Union are currently top of the table following their 9-0 win over Hertha 03 Zehlendorf two weeks ago.

The opponents

SFC Stern 1900 have been a presence in the Regionalliga since 2017, establishing themselves as mid-table mainstays. In their first two seasons in the third division, the team from Steglitz  finished in 5th and 6th place. Last season, however, they only came 13th, narrowly avoiding relegation to the Verbandsliga. Consequently, there was a change of coach in the summer, with  Marco Böning taking the reins. Under the 37-year-old, the experienced squad - on average five years older than the Union team - are expected to once again secure their place in the league.

So far, however, Stern's start to the season has been somewhat bumpy, with only four points from their first five games. They are sitting currently in 10th. After a clear 3-0 win over Eintracht Leipzig-Süd on the opening day of the season, they only managed one point in the following four games, a 2-2 draw at Magdeburger FFC. Last weekend, they suffered a heavy 4-0 home defeat at the hands of the previously winless Bischofswerdaer FV, who overtook Stern in the table in doing so.

The head to head

Union have won seven of their eight matches so far this year, and their past results against Stern suggest that this run should continue. Only once, in the first meeting between the two teams in the summer of 2017, did the teams part with a draw (2-2). Since then, there have been seven victories in a row for Union. The results have also been decisive: a 4-1 and 3-1 in 2019, followed by 3:0 and 7:0  wins the following season. The last time the teams faced each other was almost exactly a year ago, on the second gday of last season, when Union also won clearly 4-1 at Dörpfeldstraße thanks to goals from Celine Frank, Lisa Heiseler, Yara Scheffler and Megan Reichenbach (the latter pair both scoring their first goal for Union).

The coach's view ahead of the game

"We expect Stern 1900 to be a compact opponent who will do everything they can to defend the goal..." said Union head coach Ailien Pose this week.  "But one who will also repeatedly switch to attacking play with quick, targeted actions." 

Personnel

Naika Reissner and Sarah Duszat will not be available due to injury. In addition, central defender Pauline Gericke, who has been nominated for the U19 national team, will be absent. The players Zita Rurack, Nour Youssef, Ginger Schulz and Marie Becker are still out with injuries. Whether they will be able to play on Sunday will only be decided in the final training session.