Urs Fischer is generally at a loss for peace. And it is rare for the volume of his statements to vary. On Saturday, at halftime of the game against TSG 1899 Hoffenheim, things were admittedly different. “I was loud,” said the coach of 1. FC Union Berlin, and “I think the words came through.” The good thing from his point of view was that the latter meant a clear improvement in his team’s performance. The bad thing is that it wasn’t enough. And in the end it was clear that the Alte Försterei was in danger of losing its intimidating character.
Two weeks after the sobering 3-0 defeat against RB Leipzig, Union lost 0-2 (0-2) to Hoffenheim on Saturday. The Kraichgau victory was absolutely “okay” and deserved, Fischer said. And imposed a largely silent silence on himself in the press conference. Not that he says a word he regrets via the media.
Bonucci was involved in both goals conceded – he is the only Union player who looks old
Because of the 2-0 defeat, Union has had four defeats in a row for the first time since 2019/2020, unlike back then across all competitions. Now you can lose against Leipzig, in Wolfsburg, at Real Madrid and against this Hoffenheim. On Saturday, however, Fischer spoke of his team’s “non-performance” and said he was “pissed off” by it. However, Fischer expressly did not see a direct connection with the Champions League game at Real Madrid on Wednesday (0-1 in the 94th minute). The second half impressively demonstrated that this game was not in the players’ hands. Because after the halftime speech the basics were right again. Anyway.
This also applied to Union’s Italian European champion Leonardo Bonucci, 36, who also made his Bundesliga debut for Berlin three days after his appearance in Madrid in the premier class. It’s just stupid: he was clearly visible in the photos of the two goals conceded. First, he was responsible for the penalty that gave Hoffenheim the lead by grabbing Andrej Kramaric’s biceps and knocking him over in the penalty area. Kramaric himself safely converted the penalty (21st). At 2-0, Bonucci was too late when Maximilian Beier was able to run towards a low cross from the right and lunge to extend the ball into the goal. However, see above, Bonucci wasn’t the only Union player who looked old at this point in the game.
Hoffenheim’s defensive work is in no way inferior to the best Union defensive performances
At this point, the Hoffenheim team noticed something that lasted throughout the game: their self-confidence after three wins in a row. And the will to forego any unnecessary flourishes on the defensive and, when in doubt, to intervene with feet of steel. No scene illustrated this better than a liberating move by the extremely snappy TSG central defender John Anthony Brooks. In the 5th minute he shot the ball out of the stadium.
With their tight defense, which was in no way inferior to the best Union defensive performances of the past, the Hoffenheim team skillfully prevented the Köpenick team from having longer periods of possession in the first half. Not that the Unioners are particularly famous for letting the ball circulate like the Dutch World Cup team from 1974. But the number of easy ball losses in the build-up was noticeable. Promising finishes were in short supply, as was physical defense. And shortly before the break, the Berliners were lucky that the video referee corrected the referee Deniz Aytekin: A foul by Danikho Doekhi was undoubtedly outside the penalty area, the penalty awarded by Aytekin was annulled.
Strong on the ball, but unfortunate in finishing: Berlin’s David Datro Fofana (left) doesn’t score a goal against Hoffenheim.
(Photo: Andreas Gora/dpa)
Then the Union reaction followed. Hoffenheim’s Ihlas Bebou put a ball on the side netting shortly after coming on as a substitute. Afterwards, however, it was unmistakable that Union rebelled against the result. The Berlin club had chance after chance, through Kevin Behrens (59th/60th), twice through Lucas Tousart – and especially through David Datro Fofana, who came on as a substitute in the second half. The first time, the Ivorian let the ball dance in the air like a seal in the penalty area; But a Hoffenheim player got a leg caught in his shot (68′). Shortly afterwards, Fofana made a spectacular dribble into the six-yard box, but Hoffenheim goalkeeper Oliver Baumann was there for his shot from a tight angle. Baumann distinguished himself once again when Janik Haberer headed the ball towards the goal from ten meters after the following corner.
Coach Fischer also took part in the attack and substituted anything that smelled like an attack: Mikkel Kaufmann, Aïssa Laïdouni, Benedict Hollerbach came on. But in the end it wasn’t enough because Hoffenheim dug themselves in very deeply, in case of doubt in their own penalty area. Referee Aytekin ordered six minutes of added time. But what Union had to endure on Wednesday in the Champions League against Real Madrid did not happen in the Alte Försterei: that the game took a last-minute turn. And yet in the end it was the same as always in Köpenick: the team was given one by the fans Standing ovation celebrated as if the first half had never existed.