In the opening match of the Bundesliga's 21st matchday, 1. FC Union Berlin and Eintracht Frankfurt played to a 1:1 draw. It was the debut for Frankfurt's new coach Albert Riera, but both teams remain winless in the new year. Goals came late, amid a pyrotechnics interruption and tough weather conditions.
The match between 1. FC Union Berlin and Eintracht Frankfurt ended in a 1:1 (0:0) draw on Friday evening in the Bundesliga's 21st matchday. Union fans interrupted the game at the start with pyrotechnics celebrating the club's 60th anniversary, leading to a six-minute pause due to smoke obscuring visibility. Referee Sören Storks resumed play afterward.
Eintracht Frankfurt, under new coach Albert Riera, took early control with 76 percent possession in the first half but managed only one shot on goal. The visitors from Hesse, who had conceded 46 goals for the league's weakest defense, showed slight improvements. Riera, replacing Dino Toppmöller, motivated his team with bold words: "Perhaps I have a magic wand, but believe me, I will make it happen. Everything will be different." On the sidelines, the 43-year-old Spaniard was energetic, clapping and gesturing animatedly.
The game remained sluggish for much of the time. Union came under pressure from mid-first half, with goalkeeper Kauã Santos saving a volley from Aljoscha Kemlein (41'). Oscar Højlund missed Frankfurt's first real chance in the 56th minute. Derrick Köhn hit the post for Union in the 76th. Only in the 84th minute did Nathaniel Brown put Frankfurt ahead with a volley. Three minutes later, Højlund conceded a penalty with repeated fouls, earning a yellow-red card, and Leopold Querfeld converted it for the equalizer.
Brown praised his team: "I'm very proud of the squad; from the flow of the game, it's bitter to concede the 1:1." Union sporting director Horst Heldt called the result "fair": "A new coach always sparks something. But with a man advantage, you want to go for the win." Despite snowfall, ice pellets, and freezing rain, the match took place at Stadion An der Alten Försterei—Union fans had cleared snow beforehand, similar to before the January Mainz game.
Frankfurt remains winless in nine competitive matches and sits seventh with 28 points. Union is winless in six games and ninth with 25 points.
