1. FC Union Berlin continued their superb recent run of form with a 1-0 win over VfL Wolfsburg on Sunday evening. Benedict Hollerbach scored the only goal of the game in the 63^rd minute to cap a brilliant collective performance.

1. FC Union Berlin: Rönnow – Trimmel (78. Roussillon), Doekhi, Querfeld, Leite Juranovic – Haberer (90. Tousart), Khedira, Schäfer – Ilic (38. Ljubicic), Hollerbach (78. Skarke) 

VfL Wolfsburg: Grabara – Kaminski, Fischer, Odogu, Gerhardt, Mæhle (73. Tiago Tomas) – Vranckx (85. Nmecha), Arnold – Wimmer, Wind, Amoura (85. Behrens) 

The Starting XI

Steffen Baumgart made just one change from the side who started last week’s win in Freiburg. Frederik Rönnow was in goal, behind the three central defenders, Diogo leite, Leopold Querfeld and Danilho Doekhi, with Christopher Trimmel as right wing-back, Josip Juranović on the left.

Rani Khedira anchored the midfield, alongside Janik Haberer and, replacing the injured Wooyeong Jeong, Andras Schäfer.  This left Andrej Ilic and Benedict Hollerbach starting up front.

Attendance: 22.012 

Goal: 1:0 Hollerbach (63.) 

Union roar out of the traps, are the better side, but the half remains goalless

The mood was high throughout the Union first team squad all week long, you could see it in the mood of Steffen Baumgart during his last press conference, and it shone throughout a wonderful team performance on Sunday afternoon. It’s amazing the difference a few weeks can make.

“The current situation is good,” said today’s goalscorer, the irrepressible Benedict Hollerbach, his statement dripping with understatement. “Surely everyone dreamed of this before the last few games, but it's even better that we've really been able to get so many points recently.”

 The Alte Försterei was at boiling point as kick off came underneath glorious blue skies and golden sunshine, the moods of everyone there, too, buoyed by the club’s recent results.

They bellowed at kick off and then again as Christopher Trimmel won a corner on the right. Then the place almost took off as Leopold Querfeld stooped to crash a header from Josip Juranović’s set-piece that came back off the post. But the noise wasn’t to be halted, especially when Maximilian Arnold cracked into a tackle on the rampaging Rani Khedira just at the edge of the Wolfsburg box.

Union had flown into the opening few minutes, but Wolfsburg had a huge chance with five minutes yet not played when Mohammed-Elamine Amoura ran through on goal but put his shot wide of Frederik Rönnow’s goal from an angle on the right, aiming for the back post.

The game raced from end to end – it was a fine spectacle - and following a Rönnow punch, stretching for the ball as it was hit from the byline, swinging away from him, Trimmel had to make a superb slide to stop Joakim Maehle from squeezing a shot off from the edge of the Union box.

Union countered through benedict Hollerbach, cutting in from left at pace, as Christopher Trimmel and Juranović swapped sides, keeping the guests guessing, exploiting the full width of the pitch, attacking at pace. Hollerbach would repeat the trick, causing Kilian Fischer no end of problems as he teased him, bobbing and weaving like a featherweight boxer on the charge.

With 15 minutes played, Andrej Ilic couldn’t get the ball out from under his feet as another Hollerbach run gave him a micro-second to shoot. Union’s target man wasn’t just holding out for balls into the box though, and soon after was seen tackling Maehle on the halfway line. Hollerbach was a livewire and almost set up Juranović from the right this time, the Croatian drawing a full length stop from Kamil Grabara as he drove low and hard with his left.

Union were enjoying themselves, confidence coursing through them. Juranović flicked a backheel to Hollerbach along the line, Trimmel volleyed a Crossfield ball back to Doekhi in fine style. Hollerbach shot just over after Khedira set him free again.

But still Rönnow had to save well from Patrick Wimmer as he snuck in behind Querfeld, again aiming to beat Union’s stopper by shooting across him. The Berlin born, former Unioner, making his Bundesliga debut, David Odogu put his header wide from a free kick under pressure from the excellent Diogo Leite.

With 35 minutes gone, Rönnow had to make a stop, point blank, from Wimmer on the right, before Leite made up for the slight misstep that let him in in the first place by tackling Amoura on the follow up before he had a chance to shoot.

But then the impressive Ilic went down, though bathed in sunshine in front of the Waldseite, he limped off, replaced by Marin Ljubicic. As he was down the players came to the touchline, Steffen Baumgart taking the chance to have a chat with Hollerbach, before patting him on the back and sending him back into the fray.

The half ended with the chaos of a video check, as Doekhi and Wimmer tussled trying to reach the next Union corner, and the Union defender looked to have been dragged to the ground. At first the referee, Harm Osmers, gave a free kick to Wolfsburg, but Doekhi seemed to the innocent party. Arnold stood for an eternity, arguing, before Khedira came across to have his own word.

Rönnow saves; Hollerbach scores

The second half started in a more placid manner to the first, but still Doekhi had to clear Amoura’s shot off the line, though he was perfectly placed to do so, and had little trouble clearing the danger. Rönnow then made another, if typically brilliant, reflex stop from Kaminski, sticking his left hand out in a flash, his handball roots shining through again. He makes them so often; it is easy to forget how much skill and hand-eye-coordination they take.

His opposite number, Grabara, was then called into action as Juranović whipped a deep, in-swinging cross in from the left towards Trimmel. Wolfsburg broke following the resulting corner, with Amoura chasing down Trimmel, but as Union’s skipper cleared, the ball smashed into the young striker’s face. It was a cracking blow, and he required immediate attention.

Within minutes however, Union took the lead. Juranović sailed a long throw in from the right. This time, however Grabara was unsighted as Querfeld flicked it on and Hollerbach popped up next to him, clipping it into the net from five yards out.

Again, there was a moment of unknowing, as the Wolfsburg players crowded the beleaguered Osmers, crying out for an offside, and the call went upstairs, but with the goal’s confirmation, Khedira gestured to the crowd to keep the noise up, to never let it drop. Rönnow did something similar, but to his team-mates, a while later as play paused. They weren’t taking anything to chance.

Khedira would be seen soon afterwards, pounding the turf in agony after coming together with Wimmer. But Union’s vice-captain is made of strong stuff, as well as in imperious form, he hobbled back for the resultant free kick to wild applause.

The guests were now trying all they could to break through in search of an equaliser, but Union held firm, and when Hollerbach saw a gap that had opened, it took the most solid of blocks from Vranckx to stop him in his tracks.

At the other end Fischer shot from the edge of the box, but it took a big deflection and flew wide.

After Juranović flashed a free kick over the bar Hollerbach left the pitch alongside Trimmel, replaced by Tim Skarke and Jérôme Roussillon, who took over from Juranović on the left, allowing him to switch to his more regular right hand berth.

Roussillon flew into action, giving the ball away to Jonas Wind, before winning it back as his momentum carried him inexorably onwards, and setting Skarke free down the left.

As the sun started to set over the forest, the returning Kevin Behrens suddenly had an opening, just minutes after having come back to his old stamping ground. But inexplicably, somehow, he contrived to balloon the ball over the bar from three yards out. He held his head in his hands, and the Unioner took breath.

Baumgart made a final change, bringing Lucas Tousart on for the tireless Haberer. Five minutes were added on. Tiago Tomas went down as a furious Tousart clearance caught him in the face on its way out for a throw, but Khedira was there in a flash, helping him to his feet, dragging him up. He wanted this done with.

There was still time for Haberer to flash a shot wide of goal with his left after Ljubicic had set Skarke away with the cleverest of switched passes, first time, on the turn.

But that was that. Union had won three of their last four, with only draw at home to Bayern inbetween.

After the final whistle, Baumgart said, “Some might say that it was a hard-fought victory. We had a very good first 20 to 25 minutes, then Wolfsburg came into the game better and there were two or three tricky situations. The second half was also evenly poised, but we had the necessary bit of luck. We are very happy with the win,” but, as with Hollerbach, he was playing it down.

With 33 points, and an 11 point advantage of third from bottom placed Heidenheim, the world looks a much better place for them right now.