Win or fly. That is the premise under which 1. FC Union Berlin must approach the last game of the group in the Europa Conference League against Slavia Prague Only a win will see the Ironmen through to the next round, the play-offs for the last 16.
Union are therefore facing an “endgame” and, according to coach Urs Fischer at the pre-match press conference on Wednesday afternoon, “that’s what we’ve been working towards “ His most experienced player is also looking forward to the showdown with the Czech champions and cup winners. “I think this is everything we imagined,” said Max Kruse, and the 33-year-old attacker added: “We wanted to have the final, and if we reached the play-offs, that would be a huge success. “
Fischer and Kruse know that the importance of the match also increases the pressure on the still internationally inexperienced Union team. However, the coach stressed that “it would be wrong to ignore the special constellation,” “but increasing the pressure would not be the right thing to do either “ A mixture of tension and relaxation is considered the ideal mental disposition at Union to achieve the desired result. Everyone at the Berlin club knows that this will not be easy. “Slavia is doing very well at the moment,” Fischer made clear. The Czech Fortuna Liga leaders are a team that is “very compact and very aggressive against the ball” and has “a lot of quality and difference players in the forward movement”, said the Union coach.
Squad almost complete
What the Eisernen must do to successfully counter Slavia’s qualities and carry off the desired victory is clear to Fischer. “We are talking about our face,” said the 55-year-old. In other words: Union must display its virtues such as compactness, physical presence and tactical discipline to parry the opponent, “and we have to manage that over 90 minutes,” said Fischer, who has all players on board except for the injured junior player Laurenz Dehl. In addition, the Berlin coach considers it necessary for his team to be “precise” in their forward play. And, he adds, “you also have to be efficient”.
However, Union believe it is imperative not to lose their heads in the pursuit of victory. “We always need courage “, Kruse stressed, “but we’re not going to play 90 minutes of ruck-roaring football up front.” Patience is needed, and if things get tight at the end, you can still attack with full risk, said the former international. In any case, Kruse, like his team-mates and those in charge, exudes confidence that Union will make it into the play-offs. But even if the hoped-for winter in international competition does not come to pass, Kruse continues, “we can be very proud of what we have achieved “ This Thursday, however, the crowning glory is to follow.
