Union Berlin beats Eintracht Braunschweig 4-2 in DFB-Pokal first round

Lustrinelli takes charge

The DFB-Pokal first-round match marked the competitive debut of Swiss manager Mauro Lustrinelli following his summer move from FC Thun to 1. FC Union Berlin. Union ended a 99-day break from competitive fixtures after concluding the previous Bundesliga season with a 4-0 win against FC Augsburg. In his starting lineup, Lustrinelli placed Matheo Raab in goal ahead of Carl Klaus, while Leopold Querfeld started in central defense in place of the injured Marvin Friedrich. Captain Rani Khedira led the team in midfield, with new signings Zeno Van den Bosch and Emmanuel Latte Lath also in the starting eleven.

After the final whistle, Lustrinelli assessed his team's performance.

We are not yet able to show our intensity and our activity over 90 minutes. But I think: Since the beginning, today was our best game on the pitch so far.

Early deficits and set-piece responses

Playing before 21,532 spectators at the stadium in Braunschweig, the second-division hosts created early difficulties for the top-flight visitors. Goalkeeper Raab tipped a deflected cross by Max Marie over the bar in the seventh minute, but Marie scored the opening goal in the 11th minute with a turn and finish into the bottom right corner. Union equalized in the 31st minute when Belgian defender Van den Bosch headed home a corner delivered by Josip Juranovic. Eintracht Braunschweig nearly restored the lead five minutes later, but Noah Katterbach struck the crossbar in the 36th minute. Winger Aaron Opoku created repeated chances on the left flank before the interval, curling an effort just wide of the far post in the 43rd minute.

Second-half turnaround in Braunschweig

Braunschweig took the lead again in the 54th minute when Maximilian Entrup laid the ball off for Marie, who completed his brace with a low strike. Two minutes later, Opoku failed to complete a pass on a counter-attack, and Union punished the miss. Tom Rothe made it 2-2 in the 63rd minute, converting after Juranovic sent in a corner and substitute Marin Ljubicic flicked the ball toward the far post. Ljubicic then gave Union the lead in the 72nd minute by tapping in a rebound after Braunschweig goalkeeper Ron-Thorben Hoffmann parried a shot from Ilyas Ansah. Ljubicic added his second goal with the final action of the match in the 94th minute, following late missed chances from Braunschweig players Mehmet Aydin in the 87th minute and Yann Sturm in the 90th minute.

Lopsided wins for Mainz and Gladbach

Other Bundesliga sides recorded large wins in their opening cup fixtures. FSV Mainz 05, managed by former Union coach Urs Fischer, defeated fifth-tier Oberliga club VfB Krieschow 9-0 in front of 4,000 spectators, with Phillip Tietz scoring four goals. Borussia Monchengladbach advanced with a 5-0 victory over fifth-tier TSV Schott Mainz, following seven wins from seven pre-season friendlies. Hugo Bolin scored twice in the 22nd and 48th minutes, while Daiki Hashioka, Lukas Ullrich, and teenager Wael Mohya added goals. Monchengladbach coach Eugen Polanski outlined his team's focus before the match.

We want to show why we are favorites, approach the game very professionally and with humility, and still with a certain joy.

Union Berlin begins its Bundesliga campaign at home against Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday.