Can Union’s attack succeed without Andrej Ilic (25)?
With four assists, Ilic is one of the best prepared players in the league – only Frankfurt’s Farès Chaïbi (22) has more assists this season (five). In the Iron Men’s attack, Ilic was the source of ideas and finding space. He controlled the ball decisively and passed it to his teammates without being selfish. He was one of Union’s greatest strengths – and exposed a suspected weakness in the squad.
But: Match against Bayern (2:2) have shown: union can also score without the Serbian. Due to illness, Steffen Baumgart had to play without a striker and left the team playing without a striker.
This allows Ilyas Ansah (21) to defend on the left wing. A much more comfortable position for U21 players. The match in Bremen on matchday 8 (0-1) showed that he was unable to replace Ilic. After Ilic was replaced, Ansah tried to move more to the middle.
The summer newcomer from Paderborn sees his task as learning to play as a centre. After the game against Bremen, the question still remains: What will happen to Union if Ilic is out for longer?
An unusual Bayern comparison: “What a Rottweiler scratches in the wrong place!”
The answer: The Iron Men should rely more on their standard powers. Thanks to that, they were able to take points from Bayern and scored two goals against Manuel Neuer (39). It remains to be seen whether the gameplay can work without Ilic. Against Bayern it was once again defender Danilho Doekhi (27) who scored both goals.
On St. Pauli Baumgart will be able to rely on Ilic again after the international break. He was partially integrated again at training on Monday.
