With visible relief, Kevin Behrens ran to the guest block. His team had to tremble for 115 minutes in a hard-fought cup game against Chemnitzer FC on Monday until Behrens saved them with a late winning goal.
With a 2-1 win at the regional league, 1. FC Union only made it through to the second round with a bang. “We struggled because we just played badly, especially with the ball. We have to be happy to have progressed,” said a visibly upset Union manager Oliver Ruhnert after the game on Sky.
It wasn’t the perfect start to the competitive calendar, but in the end only the result counts in the cup. After the surprising end of Hertha BSC against Eintracht Braunschweig on Sunday, Union was ultimately able to avoid another Berlin embarrassment and keep the hopes of the capital alive in this cup season.
During the preparation, Union had warned several times that the team would need some time to find their rhythm after the squad change in the summer. In the first half in the stadium on Gellertstrasse, she actually looked a bit rusty. After two early big chances by Christopher Trimmel and Robin Knoche, the guests struggled against deep and disciplined Chemnitz players before the break.
The hosts also started the second half stronger and rewarded themselves in the 62nd minute. After a nice free-kick cross from Kilian Pagliuca, Chemnitz captain Tobias Müller headed in for a deserved lead. Union’s response was not only prompt, it was also worth seeing.
With his first action of the game, substitute Andreas Voglsammer prevailed in the penalty area and crossed to Jordan Siebatcheu, who directed the ball into the top corner with an overhead kick just before the line, scoring his first competitive goal for Union.
