BOYS IN BROWN IN CONFIDENT MOOD AGAINST IMPRESSIVE BERLINERS
Thursday, 09. March 2017, 16:08 Uhr
St. Pauli have been in impressive form of late, no question about it, and are looking to continue in that vein at home against Union Berlin on Friday evening (kick-off: 1830 CET). The Iron Ones, for their part, are enjoying the best second division campaign in their history and travel to the Millerntor on top of the current form table, so there should be no lack of excitement.
"Every game's a top game for us", said FCSP boss Ewald Lienen ahead of the clash between the Boys in Brown, third in the current form table (13 points), and the stand-out team of 2017 (16 points). "The stats may make pleasant reading for the fans, but for me they're irrelevant," he continued. "We're in a fight against relegation and go into every fixture as if it were a top game, a game in which we have to improve and progress as well as pick up points. Union are the best team in the league at the moment and represent a big challenge for us."
The Boys in Brown faced another big challenge when they entered the winter break bottom of the table on just 11 points, a challenge they have met with aplomb in recent weeks. They have recorded four wins in their last five outings, including the 2-1 victory at then league leaders Eintracht Braunschweig and the 5-0 drubbing of Karlsruhe, plus the draw at Bielefeld. Sören Gonther and Co. cannot afford to relax, however, because as Lienen was keen to stress, apart from an improved situation they have achieved nothing yet.
If Lienen's side are to continue their run of form against Union Berlin, every single member of the team must be prepared to go to the limit once again, as the visitors are full of confidence at the moment. Union racked up 28 points in the first half of the season and have added another 16 (five wins, one draw) since the turn of the year. Jens Keller's men are the team of the moment, then, and serious contenders for promotion.
After the 2-0 home win over Würzburg the Union fans summed up their rise to the upper echelons of the league with a banner that read "Shit... We're going up!". Indeed, if the Berliners carry on the way they are going, they may well be celebrating promotion to the Bundesliga for the first time at the end of the season. Nevertheless, the Boys in Brown are determined to make sure Union hit a bump in the road at the Millerntor, where the visitors have yet to register a win (three draws, four defeats).
In their bid to extend their unbeaten run to six games (the last time they did that was between October and December 2011), Lienen's charges will need to be at their very best defensively, as Union have scored eleven goals since the restart, the second highest tally in the league. Only the Boys in Brown have celebrated more often, with 12. On Friday evening, they again want to have one more reason to celebrate than the visitors.
Photo: Witters
