Union duel with one-sided tension
In the Europa League, the last matchday of the group stage will see a clash between two clubs who could hardly be more similar and whose names alone could be a source of confusion
Union Saint-Gilloise from Belgium and Union Berlin from Germany’s Bundesliga are currently shedding the underdog stamp and have been shaking up their national leagues for the past two to three years.
The Belgians are already confirmed as winners in this Group D of the Europa League and have made it through to the last 16. The Eisernen will be the seventh German team to spend the winter in the European Cup, the only question is whether in the Europa League or the Conference League. Urs Fischer’s team is currently second, but can still be caught by Sporting Braga.
The calculation is simple. With an away win or if the Portuguese don’t win at home against the point-less Malmö team, the Köpenickers are through. The only problem is that Saint-Gilloise are in a very good mood and a three-goal win for the Berliners cannot be firmly planned by any means.
We think anything is possible and expect a duel on equal terms. The Belgians have already won the first leg at the Alte Försterei and if we look at the Eisernen’s season, that is already a real sign of quality. That’s why we wouldn’t necessarily place a tip on an away win in this second leg between Royale Union SG and Union Berlin.
Royale Union SG – Statistics & current form
For a small club, it is unfortunately the order of the day to have to deal with departures of top players or even offers for the coach. Royale Union Saint-Gilloise, like Union Berlin, have always managed to compensate for these departures. After narrowly missing out on the Belgian championship last year, Karel Geraerts’ team is once again doing very well this season.
Strong form of the Belgians
After 15 matchdays, Union are in fourth place with 32 points and fully on course for the championship play-offs. However, they are already eight points behind the leaders from Genk. Royale, however, is in extremely good form and has not lost in eleven games. There have only been two draws. This should also be an indication that you should look at the odds on a point win for the Belgians between Royale Union SG and Union Berlin.
At the weekend, however, Royale Union struggled to some extent at relegation candidates Seresien. The score remained 0-0 until the break, but Dante Vanzeir was on hand to open the scoring immediately after the restart. Captain Teddy Teuma increased the lead to 2-0 from the penalty spot a quarter of an hour before the end, but the underdogs scored almost immediately. In the end, Saint-Gilloise held on for a narrow 2-1 away win.
In terms of personnel, things could not have looked better for the Belgians. Only Japan’s Koki Machida, who will also miss the 2022 World Cup in Qatar due to a serious hip injury, is not available to Royale Union. Otherwise, Karel Geraerts can draw from a full complement on Thursday. The question will be whether he will rotate anything, though, given the certainty of winning the group.
Predicted line-up of Royale Union SG:
Moris – Burgess, van der Heyden, Kandouss – Lynen – Lapoussin, Amani, Teuma, Francois – Vanzeir, Boniface – Coach: Geraerts
Last matches played by Royale Union SG:
Jupiler Liga
30/10/2022 – RFC Seraing 1 – 2 Royale Union Saint-Gilloise
Europa League Grp. D
27/10/2022 – Malmö FF 0 – 2 Royale Union Saint-Gilloise
Jupiler Liga
23/10/2022 – Royale Union Saint-Gilloise 2 – 2 Club Bruges
19/10/2022 – Royale Union Saint-Gilloise 2 – 0 KAA Gent
17/10/2022 – KV Oostende 1 – 6 Royale Union Saint-Gilloise
Union Berlin – Statistics & current form
At the Alte Försterei, the Eisernen continue to live a dream from which it is best not to wake up at all. For weeks, Union Berlin has been at the top of the Bundesliga. Everyone is waiting to see when Urs Fischer’s team will collapse, but it’s not happening. Meanwhile, it would no longer be a surprise if the Köpenickers went into the World Cup break at the top of the table.
Dream season for the Eisernen
The Berliners don’t play the most spectacular football, but they are tactically outstanding and have an extremely strong mentality to boot. The Köpenickers have won seven of their last eight competitive matches. The only defeat came in Bochum, in a match in which the Eisern were exceptionally below their potential. Overall, the last results show that it is safe to think about predicting an away win between Royale Union SG and Union Berlin.
Last weekend the Berliners showed once again that for them the game is not over until the final whistle. Until ten minutes before the end, they were trailing 0:1 at home against Borussia Mönchengladbach. The equaliser by Kevin Behrens was the overture for a magnificent final phase in which Danilho Doekhi scored the 2-1 winner for Union in the seventh minute of injury time.
Stress management is of course also a big issue for the Eisern. Captain Christopher Trimmel was initially on the bench against Gladbach, but will probably be back in the starting eleven in Belgium. In general, Urs Fischer has options in all positions, as it seems that the entire squad will be available on Thursday.
Predicted line-up of Union Berlin:
Rönnow – Knoche, Doekhi, Leite – Puchacz, Haberer, Khedira, Schäfer, Trimmel – Jordan, Becker – Coach: Fischer
Last matches played by Union Berlin:
Bundesliga
30/10/2022 – Union Berlin 2 – 1 Gladbach
Europa League Grp. D
27/10/2022 – Union Berlin 1 – 0 Braga
Bundesliga
23/10/2022 – VfL Bochum 2 – 1 Union Berlin
DFB Cup
20/10/2022 – Union Berlin 2 – 0 FC Heidenheim
Bundesliga
16/10/2022 – Union Berlin 2 – 0 Borussia Dortmund
Royal Union SG – Union Berlin Direct comparison / H2H balance
Royale Union Saint-Gilloise and Union Berlin are absolute newcomers on the international stage. Both clubs are just earning their first spurs in the European Cup, and they are doing it with absolute bravado. Neither team has faced many opponents in the European Cup yet. The first leg at the Alte Försterei was the first competitive match between the two Union clubs.
The Berliners, who are strong at home, were beaten 0:1 in their own stadium. Home defeats have not been very frequent for the Köpenickers in recent years, so this victory for the Belgians was something special, especially as the Bundesliga leaders were favourites at the time. In 2020, both clubs faced each other in a test match. In that match, they parted with a 2-2 draw.
Royal Union SG – Union Berlin Tip
Thursday sees a clash between two extremely in-form teams who have already made a splash again this season, both in their domestic leagues and in the European Cup. Perhaps it is an advantage for the Berliners that there is nothing at stake for the Belgians. Perhaps there is a greater rotation at Saint-Gilloise, which the Eisern can take advantage of.
Overall, however, Karel Geraerts’ team has not lost in eleven games. The Köpenicker’s record is also impressive, however, with seven wins from the last eight competitive matches.
The Belgian coach has already made a clear announcement. He wants to win the last group match to stay in the flow. We think that the hosts will at least not lose. In the first leg, they have already shown how to crack the Ironmen, and that’s why we have decided to play the betting odds on the double chance 1X between Royale Union SG and Union Berlin.
