Bundesliga
Union Berlin 2019/20 season preview
Can the arrival of two-time Bundesliga winner Neven Subotic help Union Berlin to flourish in their debut season in the German top flight?
bundesliga.com takes a closer look at what to expect from the top-flight new boys…
Aims in 2019/20
Union are in uncharted territory this season, with their dramatic promotion/relegation play-off win over VfB Stuttgart in May allowing them to ascend to the Bundesliga for the first time in their history. The first job for Urs Fischer’s side, then, is to enjoy the ride.
After that, though, Union will hope to extend the adventure by finishing outside the bottom three. As Stuttgart found out to their cost, the east Berliners are a tough nut to crack. Two draws against the 2007 German champions were enough to seal promotion on away goals, while Union only lost five of their 34 matches in Bundesliga 2 matches last season.
Only one of those defeats came at their picturesque home at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei, and making that ground a fortress once again will be key to their chances of staying up. The addition of players with top-flight experience – striker Anthony Ujah, midfielder Christian Gentner and defender Neven Subotic – should increase the chances of Fischer’s side shocking some of the big guns. Just as importantly, though, is the news that centre-back Marvin Friedrich and winger Suleiman Abdullahi – who scored the play-off goals that got Union promoted – have been secured on permanent deals.
Player to watch
The team known as “Iron Union” had the best defence in the German second tier last season – conceding only 33 goals. You would expect that Swiss coach Fischer has been stressing the need to be watertight this season too, knowing that they are dealing with bigger fish in a choppier sea.
With that in mind, Union have succeeded in luring a tried and tested campaigner back to the Bundesliga. Subotic, who won back-to-back titles with Jürgen Klopp’s brilliant Borussia Dortmund side between 2010 and 2012, spent the last 18 months in France with Saint-Etienne. The 30-year-old Serbian was a key figure for Les Verts in Ligue 1, starting 26 matches last season to help lift them to an impressive fourth-placed finish.
“Neven Subotic is an exceptional player who has proven his class in over 300 professional games at the highest level,” Union’s director of football Oliver Ruhnert said.
Subotic spent many of his formative years in the United States and played for USMNT youth teams before representing Serbia at senior level. He first starred for Mainz before playing for Dortmund and Cologne, and is relishing his return to Germany.
“Survival will perhaps be the toughest job of my career,” he told Bild. “If we do it, we’ll be absolutely delighted.”
Watch: See how Union sealed promotion against Stuttgart
Summer transfers
IN: Suleiman Abdullahi (Eintracht Braunschweig, loan made permanent), Robert Andrich (Heidenheim), Sheraldo Becker (Den Haag), Marius Bülter (Magdeburg, loan), Florian Flecker (Hartberg), Marvin Friedrich (Augsburg), Christian Gentner (VfB Stuttgart), Marcus Ingvartsen (Genk), Cihan Kahraman (Union Fürstenwalde, end of loan), Julius Kade (Hertha Berlin), Moritz Nicolas (Borussia Mönchengladbach, loan), Keven Schlotterbeck (Freiburg, loan), Manuel Schmiedebach (Hannover, loan made permanent), Neven Subotic (Saint Etienne), Anthony Ujah (Mainz)
OUT: Lars Dietz (Viktoria Köln, loan), Marcel Hartel (Arminia Bielefeld), Marvin Friedrich (Augsburg), Peter Kurzweg (Ingolstadt), Carlos Mane (Sporting Lisbon, end of loan), Lennart Moser (Energie Cottbus, loan), Fabian Schönheim (released), Berkan Taz (Energie Cottbus, loan), Marc Torrejon (released), Eroll Zejnullahu (Carl Zeiss Jena), Robert Zulj (Hoffenheim, end of loan)
How they might line up
Stadium
The Stadion An der Alten Försterei (Stadium at the old forester’s house) has been the home of Union and its predecessor clubs since 1920. It is located in the southeast of Berlin in the district of Köpenick, and currently holds 22,012 spectators. It also plays host to an annual Christmas carol event in December for fans and friends of the club, which regularly sees over 25,000 in attendance.
In 2008, 1,600 volunteers toiled for an estimated 90,000 hours to help Union rebuild and modernise the ground. The enthusiasm and loyalty of those fans is evident on matchdays, and the pitch became a sea of red amidst a huge celebration when Union won their promotion play-off to ensure they would be the 56th team to feature in the Bundesliga.
“I know all about sold-out stadiums with spine-tingling atmospheres, but 20,000 crazy Union fans can also cause quite the stir,” Subotic said after his arrival in Berlin.
“It's not about size. It’s the passion levels of the fans that makes the difference.”
First five fixtures
Matchday 1: RB Leipzig (h) – Sunday, 18 August, 6.00pm CEST
Matchday 2: Augsburg (a) – Saturday, 24 August, 3.30pm CEST
Matchday 3: Borussia Dortmund (h), Saturday, 31 August, 6.30pm CEST
Matchday 4: Werder Bremen (h), Saturday, 14 September, 3.30pm CEST
Matchday 5: Bayer Leverkusen (a), Saturday, 21 September, 3.30pm CEST