Matchday 11 Recap: 1. FC Union Berlin 0 - 0 Dynamo Dresden

1. FC Union Berlin: Gikiewicz; Trimmel, Friedrich, Hübner, Reichel; Kroos, Prömel, Schmiedebach (Zulj); Mees (Abdullahi), Andersson (Polter), Gogia

Dynamo Dresden: Schubert; Wahlqvist, Gonther, Hamalainen, Heise; Nikolaou, Hartmann; Benatelli, Aosman (Berko), Ebert (Alik); Kone (Djuljevic)

Goals: What are these goals of which you speak?

Hey, new guy! Source: Union Berlin.

In case you haven’t been counting (because why would you want to?!), it has been close to 300 minutes since an outfield player scored a goal for Union Berlin. I specify outfield player because, lest you forget, goalkeeper Rafal Gikiewicz scored a beauty of a header after coming up for a set piece in extra time against Heidenheim on Matchday 9. That Gikiewicz’s goal only earned Union a draw at home, as opposed to a win, is troublesome. That Union Berlin followed that draw with two consecutive 0-0 draws, one at home, is even more of a cause for worry. Yes, as many will remind you, Union Berlin remain one of only two undefeated teams in German football, but it’s hard to feel like a winner when you only pick up three points from the last nine on offer.

Union Berlin travel to one of the most raucous stadiums in Europe to play that one other undefeated team in Germany in their DFB-Pokal draw tomorrow: Borussia Dortmund. And if Union Berlin can’t score on ten-man Dynamo Dresden at home, it’s hard to imagine they’ll scare up any goals at the Westfalenstadion. (Scare, because they’re playing on Halloween, get it?!)

But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. As painfully boring as it may have been, let’s revisit that game against Dresden last Sunday. Ugh, I can feel myself suppressing a yawn just thinking about it...

Urs Fischer offered up a slight variation on his usual starting 11, giving winger Joshua Mees his first start for the club after returning from injury. Reichel slotted back in for Lenz at left back, while Kroos was given the starting spot in midfield over Zulj. Yet despite the much-needed infusion of fresh blood from Mees, Union were unable to make much happen over the course of the first half. Fortunately, Dresden’s attack did little to threaten the stalwart Union defense; even if a ball managed to get past the back four, Gikiewicz was more than a match for it.

Sparks flew in the 35th minute when Dresden midfielder Jannis Nikolaou was sent off with his second yellow card. This should have worked out in Union’s favor, right? Yet as many a football fan will tell you, having a man advantage doesn’t always play out as, well, an advantage. If the scoreline is still level, teams on ten men tend to lock down and defend with their entire team behind the ball, rendering the opposing team impotent in attack as they fight to secure a point. And, when your attack is already as impotent as Union’s has been as of late, that isn’t very hard to do.

One of the more exciting things to happen in this altogether dour match, apart from the red card, was the long-awaited debut of Suleiman Abdullahi. The winger who joined Union on loan from recently relegated Eintracht Braunschweig spent his first few months at the club attempting to regain fitness post-injury. When he came on for Mees in the 59th minute, it became clear that he is capable of contributing value in attack. But it was too much to expect him, or a still-recovering Polter, who came off the bench in the 78th minute, to save the game. Union had far more chances than Dresden -- 15 shots to Dresden's 9 -- and hit the post not once, but twice. But nothing hit the back of the net.

The most disappointing thing about this draw -- and the draw against Heidenheim, and the draw against Duisburg -- is that it happened at home. Playing away from home is tough, especially in the 2. Bundesliga, where teams are close together in quality and boast super-passionate home support. It can be very hard to steal road points, making it all the more important that you win your home games if you hope to achieve anything. The euphoric 4-1 home win over St. Pauli that seemed to be Union's statement of intent at the start of the season is starting to look frighteningly like an anomaly.

Union have slumped to 3rd in the 2. Bundesliga with a record of four wins and a shocking seven draws. They are tied with 4th place Furth and 5th place St, Pauli on 19 points but have a slight edge due to their minuscule number of goals conceded; across 11 matches, Union have only allowed seven. This is a remarkable achievement in and of itself, but the attack needs to step up if this team is going to remain on course to challenge for the promotion playoff.

There’s no denying that the two Sebastians, Andersson and Polter, have what it takes to score -- they just need someone who knows how to get the ball to them, even in tricky situations. (And let’s be real, the 2. Bundesliga is a tricky situation in and of itself.) Is it too early to start thinking about bringing in a creative midfielder in January -- perhaps someone currently stuck warming a bench in the top flight who’ll be looking for much-needed game time? If I were Oliver Ruhnert, the club’s Managing Director for Professional Football and former chief scout, I’d start scouring my cell phone contacts sooner rather than later.