Finally sold out again in Köpenick

The relaxations in the pandemic rules make it possible. On Friday, the Alte Försterei will finally be sold out again and unleash its full atmosphere. Both opponents should be looking forward to it when Union Berlin hosts 1. FC Köln and Cologne’s coach Steffen Baumgart, a big fan of the Eisernen, will be a guest.

Both clubs have not yet ticked off their entry into the Europa or Conference League. As semi-finalists in the DFB Cup, the Berliners even have another chance to qualify for an international competition again. However, the Köpenickers have lost a little ground in the standings recently. With 38 points, Urs Fischer’s team is currently only in ninth place.

They are already six points off sixth place. That’s a gap that can be made up, but for that to happen, the Berliners have to win their games at home in particular.

Cologne have two points more on their account than the Ironmen and are in seventh position. However, the Rhinelanders are also four points off the Conference League. However, 40 points is a terrific interim balance, because since the introduction of the three-point rule, the Effzeh have never had more points on their account at this point. Whether you can deduce from this that betting on a success for the visitors between Union Berlin and Cologne is a good choice is something everyone must decide for themselves.

Union Berlin – Statistics & current form

It will probably only be possible to make a final assessment at the end of the season whether it was wise to let Max Kruse move to Wolfsburg. Since the attacker stopped playing for Union, there have been five defeats in seven games. In the 20 games before that, the Berliners only conceded a total of four defeats. From a sporting point of view, perhaps they should have done without the transfer proceeds.

Willingly on Friday night

In total, the Berliners have only picked up one point from their last three games. However, Friday evening seems to be a good kick-off time for the Köpenicker, because the last three Friday matches were all victorious. That would be an indication that you should at least check the odds on a home win in the match between Union Berlin and Cologne.

Before the international break, the Eisernen were simply overwhelmed in their guest game at the Allianz Arena in Munich. They failed to contain the offensive power of Bayern. In the end, they suffered a 4-0 defeat. However, other clubs have lost by as much or even more in Munich. The Berliners have now had two weeks to come to terms with this defeat.

In terms of personnel, things could hardly look better for the Köpenickers at the moment. With Keita Endo, only one player is out injured. This means that Urs Fischer has several options in many positions. Bastian Oczipka, for example, would be a candidate for the starting eleven and would thus play his 300th Bundesliga game. Genki Haraguchi is still a question mark after his long international trip. Should the Japanese player not have the necessary freshness, Kevin Möhwald, Levin Öztunali or Andreas Schäfer would be the alternatives.

Predicted line-up of Union Berlin:
Luthe – Jaeckel, Knoche, Baumgartl – Trimmel, Khedira, Gießelmann, Haraguchi, Prömel – Becker, Awoniyi – Coach: Fischer

Last matches played by Union Berlin:

Bundesliga
03/19 2022 – Bayern Munich 4 – 0 Union Berlin

03/12 2022 – Union Berlin 1 – 1 VfB Stuttgart

03/05 2022 – VfL Wolfsburg 1 – 0 Union Berlin

DFB Cup
03/01 2022 – Union Berlin 2 – 1 St. Pauli

Bundesliga
02/26 2022 – Union Berlin 3 – 1 Mainz 05

Cologne – Statistics & current form

For Steffen Baumgart it is always a great experience to be a guest at Union. He played at the Alte Försterei from 2002 to 2004 and met his wife there at the time. The bond with the Eisernen is therefore still strong, but the coach of the Geißböcke will still be looking to take the three points on Friday. However, Cologne have lost their last three games on a Friday night.

Strong away record

The current statistics nevertheless give us hope that the Geißböcke will take something countable home from the capital, as the Effzeh have only conceded one defeat in their last eight away games, and that was in Leipzig. That’s why we would predict before the clash between Union Berlin and Cologne that the Rhinelanders will at least take a point with them.

It is striking that Cologne have never scored more than two goals in their last five games. Steffen Baumgart has obviously managed to stabilise his defence. Thus, the last match before the international break against Borussia Dortmund ended in a 1-1 draw. BVB took the lead very early, but before the break Sebastian Andersson scored the final goal.

As things stand, Steffen Baumgart will have to do without three players in Berlin. Louis Schaub is in isolation. Ondrej Duda has to serve a yellow ban and Benno Schmitz is out with a thigh injury. It is unclear whether Ellyes Skhiri will play again after the international matches with Tunisia. Dejan Ljubicic would probably be the first alternative.

Predicted line-up of Cologne:
Schwäbe – Ehizibue, Kilian, Hübers, Hector – Özcan, Ljubicic – Thielmann, Uth, Kainz – Modeste – Coach: Baumgart

Last matches played by Köln:

Club friendlies
03/23 2022 – Siegburger SV 04 1 – 8 1. FC Köln

Bundesliga
03/20 2022 – 1. FC Köln 1 – 1 Borussia Dortmund

03/13 2022 – Bayer Leverkusen 0 – 1 1. FC Köln

03/06 2022 – 1. FC Köln 0 – 1 Hoffenheim

02/26 2022 – Greuther Fürth 1 – 1 1. FC Köln

Union Berlin – Cologne Direct Comparison / H2H Balance

The 1. FC Köln is a veteran of the Bundesliga, even if they had to make a few detours into the Unterhaus in the meantime. The Geißböcke have already won against almost every club in the Bundesliga, except Union. In five direct first league encounters, four Berlin victories and one draw have been recorded. Overall, however, the direct comparison is balanced with 6:6 victories and two draws.

Cologne’s last win was a good eight years ago, when it was still in the second division. The first leg in Cologne ended in a 2-2 draw after a spectacular 90 minutes in the cathedral city. Anthony Modeste had initially put the Geißböcke in front. Julian Ryerson and Grischa Prömel turned the game around before Modeste again levelled the score at 2:2.

Union Berlin – Cologne tip

Friday night is the favourite date for Berlin, who have picked up nine points from their last three games with this kick-off time. Cologne last lost three times in a row on Fridays. However, the current form speaks more in favour of the Geißböcke. Especially away from home, things have been going really well lately. The Effzeh have only lost one match in their last eight away games.

The Eisern have had their problems recently. Urs Fischer’s team only picked up one point from the last three games. In general, there has only been one win in the last seven Bundesliga games. That sounds like it could end Cologne’s Friday curse.

We don’t expect a lot of goals to be scored. In the last five games of the Billy Goats there were never more than two goals. So betting on sub-par goals can be a tried and tested method. We think a 1-1 draw is conceivable, but we do not recommend betting on the result. We have therefore decided to play the betting odds on goals for both teams between Union Berlin and Cologne.