Niederlechner brace brings Union to heel

Augsburg 2-1 Union Berlin
Goals: 1-0 Niederlechner (17'), 1-1 Ingvartsen (25'), 2-1 Niederlechner (47')

Union travelled south with the prospect of moving into fourth following Borussia Mönchengladbach's win over Borussia Dortmund on Friday; when Taiwo Awoniyi headed narrowly wide early on, their hopes looked fully justified against an Augsburg side that had lost their last three. Robert Andrich then drilled a shot wide, but from the resulting goal-kick, Andre Hahn flicked on and Niederlechner rampaged clear to fire low beyond ex-Augsburg man Andreas Luthe. If the Union goalkeeper's first duty was to pick the ball from his net, the same was true of Rafal Gikiewicz, who saw Marcus Ingvartsen's low shot fly between Reece Oxford's legs and find the bottom corner to level.

The game had barely restarted after the interval than Augsburg caught Union cold. Marco Richter's deep cross was met by a Hahn volley, Luthe parried brilliantly but Niederlechner tapped in the loose ball for his second of the game and the season. The forward looked to have undone his good work when he trod on Grischa Prömel when defending a corner, but Gikiewicz saved Ingvartsen's poorly executed penalty. The Augsburg goalkeeper produced an even better save to parry a point-blank Awoniyi shot, but it took a timely Nico Schlotterbeck challenge to prevent Hahn potentially adding a third for the hosts as Union slipped to a second successive defeat.

• Niederlechner, who top-scored for Augsburg with 13 goals last season, opened his 2020/21 account with his 25th attempt at goal this term and his team's first shot of the game.
• Niederlechner claimed the fifth Bundesliga brace of his career.
• Ingvartsen now has two league goals this season - this was his first away from home.
• Gikiewicz saved the second penalty of nine he has faced in his Bundesliga career.
• Augsburg snapped a three-game losing streak, while Union suffered a second successive defeat and their fourth of the season.
• Augsburg now have a second win for just one defeat in their four top-flight meetings with Union.
• Goalkeepers Gikiewicz and Luthe swapped clubs at the start of this season and faced their former sides for the second time.

Watch: Florian Niederlechner - "The dam is broken"

Augsburg: Gikiewicz - Oxford, Gouweleeuw (c), Uduokhai - Caligiuri, Strobl, Gruezo (Khedira 90'), Iago - Hahn (Finnbogason 82'), Niederlechner (Gumny 82'), Richter (Jensen 72')
Unused subs: Koubek, Pedersen, Suchy, Gregoritsch, Civeja
Out: Moravek (thigh), Framberger (hamstring), Jensen (ankle), Vargas (knock)
Coach: Heiko Herrlich

Union: Luthe - Friedrich, Knoche, Schlotterbeck (Gießelmann 78') - Trimmel (c), Andrich, Prömel (Gentner 71'), Lenz (Teuchert 79') - Ingvartsen (Gogia 71') - Becker (Bülter 62'), Awoniyi
Unused subs: Karius, Ryerson, Bülter, Endo, Griesbeck
Out: Hübner (suspended), Kruse (thigh), Pohjanpalo (ankle), Ujah (knee)
Coach: Urs Fischer