Union Berlin will welcome title-chasers RB Leipzig to the capital this Saturday as both teams chase for three points that will extend their unbeaten start to the league season.
Venue: Stadion An der Alten Försterei (Berlin)
Key Statistics
Union Berlin are unbeaten in their last nine league games (W7, D2).
The hosts have scored 3+ goals in two of their last four league games at home.
They have won their last three league games against RB Leipzig.
The visitors are winless in their last three competitive games.
They have won just four of their last 15 away league games entered as favourites (W4, D6, L5).
Should he feature, Leipzig keeper Péter Gulácsi will become the first player to reach 200 Bundesliga appearances for the club, keeping a league-high 64 clean sheets during that time.
Head to head
In eleven competitive head-to-head games between both sides, Leipzig have six wins while Union Berlin have four wins.
Latest performances in all competitions
Union Berlin: D-D-W-W-W
Leipzig: D-D-L-L-W
Union Berlin
Union Berlin will look to get their second win of the season when they host RB Leipzig this Saturday evening.
The hosts have opened their season with a 3-1 win over Hertha Berlin in the Berlin derby, before following that up with a goalless draw with Mainz last time out.
Having only made their maiden Bundesliga appearance back in 2019/20, Union Berlin have captured the imagination of the league by securing unlikely back-to-back European group-stage appearances.
They are looking to achieve another top six finish this year and have already begun on a strong note having taken four points from the six available. Currently, only Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich have taken more points from their opening two games, leaving Urs Fischer’s side sitting in fifth place in the early season table.
Die Eisernen are also one of the most in-form teams in the league as they are unbeaten in their last nine league games while winning seven of those games. Having already set the unbeaten record of nine games, Fischer will hope that his side can extend that unbeaten run a game further when his side welcomes last season’s DFB-Pokal winners, RB Leipzig.
Possible Union Berlin starting line-up
Frederik Roennow; Paul Jaeckel, Robin Knoche, Diogo Leite; Christopher Trimmel, Rani Khedira, Genki Haraguchi, Janik Haberer, Julian Ryerson; Jordan Siebatcheu, Sheraldo Becker.
Injured: Timo Baumgartl
Doubtful: None
Suspended: None
RB Leipzig
Unlike their counterparts, RB Leipzig have endured a poor start to the season.
The visitors who began their season with a 5-3 loss to Bayern Munich in the German Super Cup are winless in two Bundesliga games.
Their first outing was a disappointing 1-1 draw with Stuttgart in Round One, followed by a 2-2 draw with FC Koln last time out.
In a disappointing game at the Red Bull Arena over the weekend, former player Timo Werner who returned to the club after two years with Chelsea scored on his debut. But a red card to influential attacker Dominik Szoboszlai gave the visitors the numerical advantage and they went on to snatch a point despite Christopher Nkunku’s goal for the hosts.
For a team that won five of their last ten league games last season (D3, L2) to clinch the top four spots, two points from two games represent a very poor return. And so, Domenico Tedesco will be desperate for his side to win this game as they plot another quest for a top-four finish this season.
Possible Leipzig starting line-up
Peter Gulacsi, Mohamed Simakan, Willi Orban, Marcel Halstenberg; Benjamin Henrichs, Hugo Novoa, Dani Olmo, Kevin Kampl, David Raum; Christopher Nkunku, Timo Werner
Injured: Konrad Laimer, Yussuf Poulsen, Lukas Klostermann
Doubtful: None
Suspended: Dominik Szoboszlai
Prediction
Union Berlin 1-2 RB Leipzig
