2nd matchday
Newcomer Gosens leads Union to victory in Darmstadt
Contributed two goals to the Union victory in Darmstadt: Robin Gosens. photo
© Thomas Frey/dpa
Union Berlin storms to the top of the table after two Bundesliga games. In the victory in Darmstadt, national player Gosens proves to be the hoped-for reinforcement.
“You couldn’t have imagined it any better. To score two goals in a 4-1 away win with a man down – that’s all you can do,” enthused the international about his double in a duel with promoted Darmstadt 98, with which he brought the Berliners to their second win of the season and thus led to the top of the table in the Bundesliga for the time being.
Under the watchful eye of national coach Hansi Flick and sporting director Rudi Völler, the national player scored in the 4th and 34th minute on Saturday and thus emphatically recommended himself for the upcoming international matches of the DFB selection against Japan and France at the beginning of September.
Behrens also scores
In front of 17,810 spectators, Kevin Behrens (39′) and Danilho Doekhi (65′) scored the other goals for the Berliners, who were outnumbered for well over an hour after Brenden Aaronson (21′) received a yellow-red card. Marvin Mehlem (24th) only managed to equalize for the Lilies, who are still without a point.
“I didn’t know that the national coach was sitting in the stands,” said Gosens after the final whistle and reiterated: “But even if he had, it wouldn’t have had any effect on my game.”
For his strong performance, Gosens, who had switched from Inter Milan to the capital shortly before the Bundesliga opener for a reported 15 million euros, even received praise from the opposing coach. “The national coach saw who he had to get,” said Torsten Lieberknecht about the upcoming nomination.
Gosens acted on the left side with enormous running and tackling skills and also shone as an executor. First he hit with a placed shot from 18 meters, then with his head. “It’s a lot of fun and feels like I’ve been here for a year and a half. On the one hand, that’s because I was received and integrated so well, and on the other hand, Union’s game suits my strengths very well,” said Gosens about his Perfomance.
Find more continuity
In Berlin, the 29-year-old wants to find more continuity, which he lacked in the previous season at Inter. “I hope things will continue like this for me,” said Gosens, but immediately warned of down-to-earthness: “If we now make the mistake of thinking that we are God-knows-who, then it will stop very quickly. We have to focus on our strengths and keep working hard. We can only make it if we work like we do today, as a team and family.”
He would like to do his part – preferably next week in the top game against cup winners RB Leipzig: “You will see how far we are in our development.” Union coach Urs Fischer spoke of a “fantastic performance” and a “successful start to the season”, but did not want to overestimate either. “We have to keep fighting hard for every point. After 20 games you will see where the journey goes,” he said.
First of all, the Berliners will look to Monaco next Thursday. There the group draw in the Champions League increases, for which Gosens has a special wish. “It would come full circle for me if we were allowed to play against Inter. That would not only be a great experience for me, but also for the lads.”