Matchday 5: 1. FC Union 2 -2 MSV Duisburg

1. FC Union Berlin: Gikiewicz; Trimmel, Hübner, Friedrich, Reichel; Kroos (Redondo), Schmiedebach (Hedlund), Prömel; Hartel (Zulj), Gogia, Andersson

MSV Duisburg: Mesenhöler; Wiegel, Wolze, Neumann, Bomheuer (Nauber); Schnellhardt, Fröde; Oliveira Souza, Stoppelkamp (Engin), Iljutchenko, Tashchy (Sukuta Pasu)

Goals: Union - Gogia, 44; Hübner, 90+1Duisburg - Oliveira Souza, 77; Sukuta-Pasu, 83

Gogia doing Gogia things. Source: Union Berlin

Well, that was a match to remember -- not that you would have guessed that if you turned off the game at halftime. The first half was a back and forth affair similar to so many other Union first halves this season, with Duisburg -- not just winless, but also goalless to start the season -- desperate to keep the game scoreless as long as they could. In fact, it almost seemed like they had started time wasting in the first half in an attempt to secure at least a goalless draw, so frequently did Duisburg players seem to be going to the ground and writhing in pain. Of course, Manuel Schmiedebach being in his usual miniature pitbull form, it’s not like the Duisburg players weren’t given ample opportunity to try and win calls in their favor. The feisty little defensive midfielder got plenty of Duisburg players riled up during the game, and eventually earned a yellow for his troubles. Union had more chances than Duisburg in the first half, but none that truly made ex-Union goalkeeper Daniel Mesenhöler work very hard to keep his net empty; the crossbar did just as much work as he did. Christopher Trimmel executed his fair share of quality set pieces, but unfortunately, no one was ever on the end of his free kicks or corners to make anything of them. At one point, seemingly frustrated by his team’s inability to score, Trimmel actually made a powerful run at the box and attempted to score himself -- but the full back, not used to being in such a position, promptly slipped and fell over. Perhaps the captain should stick to set pieces. Eventually, Akaki Gogia capped off a brilliant first half with a delightful counterattack goal in the 41st minute. Gogia, who joined Union in summer 2017 from Dresden, now has two goals in five league games this season; he only scored two goals across all 22 of his appearances last season. It’s clear that Gogia is experiencing the exact opposite of a sophomore slump, whether it be because he is thriving under a new coach and with some new teammates, is just finally getting into the groove of life in Berlin, or has just come into one of those almost inexplicable, unpredictable excellent runs of form. Whatever it may be, Union are definitely benefiting from it this season. Union could go into halftime feeling confident that the better team was on top. Yet as many, including Union Berlin coach Urs Fischer, had pointed out prior to the game, Duisburg’s unfortunate start to the season was not an accurate reflection of the squad’s quality. They were bound to bounce back and start scoring sooner or later. Unfortunately for Union, it was sooner. Union started the second half strong, as they have throughout this season. Yet no amount of mental strength could counter the desperation of Duisburg. The away side’s first goal of the season came in the 77th minute, when two Union defenders collided with each other and goalkeeper Rafael Gikiewicz, causing him to fumble the ball right into the path of Duisburg’s Cauly Oliveira Souza. Oliveira Souza promptly scored and wheeled away in much-deserved delight, having finally gotten the increasingly large and distracting monkey off of his team’s collective back. The goal shocked Union and buoyed Duisburg, leading to a second goal only minutes later from Duisburg substitute Richard Sukuta-Pasu. Union were down a goal at home for the first time all season. Now it was their turn to be desperate. From there, things got fiery -- and referee Michael Bacher, in charge of his first-ever 2. Bundesliga game after being promoted from the 3. Liga, seemed woefully out of his depth when it came to handling it. Not once, but twice, did the team’s benches clear, flooding the pitch to get in the faces of their opponents. Many times they looked close to coming to blows, and Bacher did nothing to calm them down and take control of the match. (Fortunately, Schmiedebach was subbed off for Simon Hedlund before he could have gotten himself sent off.) In the end, center back Florian Hübner saved a point for Union by getting his head on the ball and slamming it home in the 91st minute. Yet only moments before, Hübner had looked on the verge of getting sent off, lunging at a Duisburg player and instigating the second of the bench-clearing scenarios that I referenced earlier. If he had gotten a red card for his troubles, he wouldn’t have been on the pitch to score -- and Union would likely have lost their first game of the season. Instead, they remain unbeaten across five, with two wins and three draws. That last-minute equalizer epitomizes the difference between this year’s Union and last year’s. The Union of the previous season lost so many games like this -- starting out on top, only for lazy defensive errors to result in first an equalizer and then a go-ahead goal for the opposing team. Rarely were they able to come back and secure a point. As disappointing as it may be to barely snatch a draw from a team that had been languishing at the bottom of the table, it shows that this Union squad has a spirit and a drive that they seemed to be lacking last season. If there’s any positive to take away from a 2-2 draw with Duisburg, it’s that.