Union Berlin vs. Borussia Mönchengladbach preview: Visitors targeting first win

Borussia Mönchengladbach will be desperate to claim their first Bundesliga win of the season when they face Union Berlin on Saturday.

Union Berlin

Union are sitting in 13th place in the Bundesliga after winning two, drawing one and losing three of their six league games. Steffen Baumgart’s charges have failed to score in their last two matches since running out 4-3 winners against Eintracht Frankfurt on September 21. They followed that result with a goalless draw against Hamburger SV, before they fell to a 2-0 defeat against Bayer Leverkusen in their final outing before the international break.

Die Eisernen will return from the international window with hopes of clinching their first home win since beating Stuttgart 2-1 on the opening weekend of the Bundesliga season. However, their hopes of picking up maximum points may be tempered by the fact that they have to win their last three meetings with Gladbach since winning 3-1 at home in December 2023. 

The first goal in Friday’s fixture could be crucial, considering Union have lost all three league games in which they have conceded first this season. 

Team News

Union are expected to be without the services of Livan Burcu, Josip Juranović, Andrik Markgraf and Robert Skov.

Predicted lineup: Rønnow; Doekhi, Querfeld, Leite; Trimmel, Khedira, Haberer, Köhn; Burke, Ansah, Ilić

Gladbach

Gladbach are the only Bundesliga team yet to win this season after drawing three and losing three of their opening six league matches. Interim boss Eugen Polanski has taken two points from his three games in charge since taking over the reins from Gerardo Seoane in the middle of September. Polanski started his time in the Gladbach dugout with a 1-1 draw against Bayer Leverkusen, before he saw his team slip to a 6-4 defeat in a thrilling home clash against Frankfurt. 

After shipping six on matchday five, Gladbach would have been relieved to keep a clean sheet in their goalless draw with Freiburg before the international window. However, while Gladbach would have been pleased with the shutout, the result extended their winless run to 13 Bundesliga matches (D5, L8). They have also failed to score in four of their six league matches this season, highlighting a key area for improvement if they are to start moving up the standings. 

Die Fohlen can at least take confidence from the fact that they completed a league double over Union Berlin last season, including a 2-1 victory in February’s trip to the Stadion An der Alten Försterei.

Team News

Gladbach will enter Friday’s contest without the services of Robin Hack, Tim Kleindienst, Fabio Chiarodia and Nathan Ngoumou.

Predicted lineup: Nicolas; Scally, Elvedi, Diks, Netz; Reitz, Sander, Engelhardt; Neuhas, Castrop, Tabaković