Berlin – Also in the meanwhile fourth Bundesliga season was there for Union Berlin only one goal in advance: staying up in the league! With 39 points, he is almost bagged after 19 match days. What are the Iron Ones aiming for next?
Union Berlin is currently rushing from victory to victory. Mascot knight club (left) shows the direction. © JOHN MACDOUGALL / AFP
In the top game next Saturday (6.30 p.m. / Sky) at RB Leipzig, the capital club can break the targeted 40-point mark and thus mathematically bag the stay in the German football upper house.
But who would seriously doubt it if, for once, the Fischer squad didn’t score points with the Red Bulls? After all, the Berliners are almost never there, along with BVB they are the only team with four league victories since play resumed in the new year.
So it’s slowly but surely time to set new goals. Manager Oliver Ruhnert (51) sees it this way: “The coach said beforehand that when we’ve reached 40, we’ll set new goals,” he explained in a “kicker” interview.
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And what do they actually look like? “Let me tell you, nobody would mind if that was enough to qualify internationally again after this season,” the 51-year-old said.
Manager Oliver Ruhnert (51) hopes that Union Berlin can qualify again for international business at the end of the season. © Soeren Stache/German Press Agency GmbH/dpa
It should definitely be possible if the people from Köpenick continue to perform so consistently. The Unioners are currently a whopping ten points ahead of seventh-placed VfL Wolfsburg.
But the team seems to be striving for something higher. A place in the Champions League is within reach and midfielder Rani Khedira (29) has even declared the “Battle with Bayern”.
The fact is: “The pressure is certainly on others and we can achieve many things, others have to achieve them,” stated Ruhnert, who immediately returned his focus to the tasks ahead.
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Because after the top game against RB, the next cracker is waiting for the FCU with the game at Ajax Amsterdam in the Europa League.
“Ajax is still one of the big numbers in Europe,” the Union manager looked ahead to the duel with the Dutch record champions. “It’s a huge challenge for us to play there,” he explains, and speaks of a dream of being able to enter the Amsterdam Arena.
Nevertheless, he doesn’t see 1. FC Union without a chance: “We’ll go there to have a good basis for the home game,” announced Ruhnert.
