Preview:Union Berlin vs Bayern Munich - prediction, team news, lineups

Union Berlin will attempt to end Bayern Munich’s perfect start to the season when they welcome the defending Bundesliga champions to the German capital this Saturday afternoon.

Die Eisernen are expected to face the toughest challenge of their season so far as they prepare to host a Bayern side who are in the midst of a 16-match winning run.

Match preview

Bearing in mind their limited resources, Union Berlin have enjoyed a strong start to their season, accumulating 11 points from their opening nine matches.

Head coach Steffen Baumgart is certainly squeezing all that he can out of his ambitious squad, which has already shocked the likes of Stuttgart and Eintracht Frankfurt this season.

Despite the feel-good factor around the club, one concern which is becoming more prevalent is Union’s struggles in the goalscoring department.

Baumgart’s side have failed to find the back of the net in four of their last five Bundesliga outings – including their goalless draw against Freiburg last weekend.

No team in the top 10 has scored fewer goals than Die Eisernen, with the Berlin outfit rattling the net just 11 times across their nine league matches this season.

The Bavarians sensationally extended their winning run to 16 games on Tuesday after beating defending Champions League kings Paris Saint-Germain away in France.

Vincent Kompany is making the job look easy, with his team not only winning games in comfortable fashion but also scoring goals for fun.

In the Bundesliga alone, Bayern have rattled the net 33 times across their nine matches – that is an average of 3.6 goals per match.

Across all competitions, the Bavarians have scored three or more goals in 13 of their 16 matches, while also keeping seven clean sheets in the process.

Nobody has really come close to beating Bayern this season, with many fans licking their lips in anticipation of their huge Champions League clash with Arsenal at the end of the month.

Despite the prospect of some tasty encounters ahead, Kompany and his men will be looking to keep their focus on Saturday’s opponents as they look to improve their winning run to 17 straight games.

Union Berlin Bundesliga form:

Union Berlin form (all competitions):

Bayern Munich Bundesliga form:

Bayern Munich form (all competitions):

Team News

Union Berlin head into the weekend without Robert Skov, who has been nursing a muscle injury since September.

Defender Christopher Trimmel will not be available for selection after accumulating five yellow cards and earning himself a suspension.

Forward Andrej Ilic is expected to lead the attack, with the 25-year-old still awaiting his first goal in the Bundesliga.

One of the scary things about Bayern Munich is the fact they could yet get strong should some of their superstar names return from injuries.

Alphonso Davies is one of those individuals, with the Canadian expected to return to action in early December according to latest media reports.

Jamal Musiala is on track for a December comeback too, with the player recently making his return to the training pitch.

Japan international Hiroki Ito has been out of action for seven months, but he is also back in training.

Harry Kane, who is flying in the Golden Boot race with 12 goals to his name, will be looking to boost his tally on Saturday.

Union Berlin possible starting lineup:

Ronnow; Doekhi, Querfeld, Leite; Khedira; Haberer, Kemlein, Schafer, Kohn; Skarke, Ilic

Bayern Munich possible starting lineup:

Neuer; Boey, Upamecano, Kim, Bischof; Kimmich, Goretzka; Olise, Kane, Diaz; Jackson

We say: Union Berlin 0-3 Bayern Munich

The likes of PSG, Chelsea and Borussia Dortmund all failed to take down Kompany’s winning machine – with that in mind, few are expecting Union Berlin to find the secret formula.

While the hosts are expected to battle hard, Bayern’s quality will not take long to have an impact on the scoreboard. As a result, we are backing the visitors to enjoy another comfortable win.

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