After last weekend’s away win in Sinsheim, 1. FC Union Berlin’s men’s team will host Borussia Mönchengladbach on Saturday afternoon. Kick off at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei stadium is at 15:30.

The lie of the land

The Foals’ formbook is currently back on an upward trend. Gladbach have won two of their last three league games, having lost the first three of the new calendar year. A 1-1 draw against third-placed Frankfurt last weekend gives them 31 points from 21 games, their best seasonal tally since 2020/21.

Union, too, are in a good mood, especially since Steffen Baumgart's team’s 4-0 away win at TSG 1899 Hoffenheim last Saturday. Marin Ljubicic and Andrej Ilic both scored their first goals in an Union shirt, with the former doing so on his debut, making it the third club he has achieved this success for.

The opponents

Like the hosts, with seven points, Gladbach are among the five best teams in the second half of the season and their recent 2-1 away win against last season’s runners-up VfB Stuttgart underlined their strong form. Still in the race for European competition, coach Gerardo Seoane's team are currently sitting in eighth place in the Bundesliga table.

The defence plays a crucial role in this. Gladbach’s back line - with Nico Elvedi and Ko Itakura offering stability, as well as goalkeeper Moritz Nicolas - are particularly strong in the air. No team in the league has conceded fewer headed goals than the Foals.

But Borussia Mönchengladbach are also particularly strong in the air at the other end of the pitch; no team has scored more with their heads. This is where Tim Kleindienst and Alassane Pléa have come in. The attacking duo have been involved in 27 of their 33 goals so far this season already.

The head to head

In six meetings at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei, 1. FC Union Berlin are yet to lose a single home game against Mönchengladbach, with five wins and one draw to their name. Away from home, they have won two, lost two, and had two draws.

The personnel

Union's head coach Steffen Baumgart will not be able to call on ‘...’ due to suspension. Christopher Trimmel is also missing due to a suspension.

The reunion

Former Union defender Marvin Friedrich has been wearing the Borussia Mönchengladbach shirt since January 2022. Before that, he was an integral part of the Union side for three and a half years and played a major role in the club's promotion to the Bundesliga in the 2018-19 season. He played all 34 second division games and scored the important equaliser in the 2-2 draw in the first leg of the play-off against VfB Stuttgart.

Goalkeeper Moritz Nicolas also has a history with Union. He played in one Bundesliga game for the Berliners during the 2019/20 season (a 4-0 away loss to Hoffenheim). Last season, he kept four clean sheets in 27 competitive appearances.

László Bénes, on the other hand, found his way into German football via Gladbach. The then 19-year-old Slovakian joined the Foals from MSK Zilina and played a total of 65 games in their green shirt.

The coaches’ views ahead of the game

“Gladbach are currently in strong form and have clear ambitions to challenge for a place in the international competitions,” was Union head coach, Steffen Baumgart’s assessment of his side’s challenge on Saturday. “Of course, we put in a good performance against Hoffenheim, but our aim is to always bring our virtues to the pitch and do everything we can to keep the three points here.”

His opposite number, Gerardo Seoane, meanwhile was taking nothing for granted ahead of Saturday’s clash. “Union cause difficulties for almost all teams at home. It's always a tough nut to crack there because the opponents are usually very compact and aggressive and play with a lot of physicality. At Union, it's always important to bring the same energy as them onto the pitch. I expect an opponent who will alternate between intense pressing and aggressive counter-pressing with good compactness. When in possession, Union also play very vertically and with great purpose.”

Service information

As usual, the Stadion An der Alten Försterei will open two hours before kick-off, tickets for both the home and away sections are sold out.

There are still extensive traffic disruptions to the public transport system, and it is only possible to travel via the ‘Altstadt Köpenick’ tram routes using the bus replacement service. All visitors are therefore advised to arrive early.

The game will be broadcast live on Sky. In addition, there will be an audio stream on rbb24 Inforadio and on rbb24. As usual, Union will also provide information about the game on the club's own live ticker, as well as providing live updates in both English and Spanish on Twitter.