The Iron Ones crushed Barcelona’s conquerors on Easter Sunday to rewrite the Bundesliga record books
Taiwo Awoniyi fired in the opener and Grischa Prömel added a second shortly after to power Union Berlin to a straightforward 2-0 home win over Eintracht Frankfurt on Sunday.
A few days earlier, Frankfurt had gone to the Camp Nou to humble Barcelona 3-2, after leading three-nil at some point, to advance to the semifinal of the Europa League.
But that mattered little to Awoniyi, who showed good strength and composure to outwit two Frankfurt defenders before slamming a left-footed finish past the goalkeeper for his 13th league goal of an excellent campaign.
Already Union Berlin’s highest goalscorer in the Bundesliga, the Nigeria international’s fierce drive extends his tally at the top of the club’s scoring chart to 18.
Furthermore, Union Berlin’s win over Frankfurt, their third in a row, is their 13th league victory this term, the most victories they have ever accumulated in a single Bundesliga season.
With their latest result, the Iron Ones have now collected 47 points – more than ever before in their short history in the German elite division.
Urs Fischer’s men finished seventh in the league last season, but they currently sit in sixth place, four points behind SC Freiburg in fifth, five points behind fourth-place Bayer 04 Leverkusen, and seven short of RB Leipzig in third.
Leipzig are Union’s next opponents on Wednesday, with both teams set to clash in the semifinal of the DFB Pokal.
Awoniyi has one goal and two assists in three appearances in the competition, and he could produce another decisive moment to inspire Union Berlin to their first Cup final in 21 years.
The Iron Ones were beaten 2-0 by Schalke in their first and only final appearance at the Olympiastadion in Berlin on May 26, 2001.
After helping his side shoot down one Europa League semifinalist, Awoniyi should be in the mood to cause the downfall of another.
And who is to say Awoniyi and Union Berlin cannot continue to write new chapters in the record books before the end of what has been another excellent campaign for the Berliners.
