- Despite Gossen's absence, Union's actions contributed to St. Paul's flawed opening.
Despite Robin Gosens' abrupt departure, Union Berlin gave FC St. Pauli a challenging start to their Bundesliga campaign. The German national team player, record signing, and top scorer for Berliner departed the Iron Ones at the last minute after only one season and didn't feature in the squad for the 1-0 (1-0) victory. In front of 22,012 spectators at a sold-out Stadion An der Alten Försterei, forward Benedict Hollerbach stole the show with his goal in the 34th minute.
Union's CEO, Horst Heldt, was taken aback by Gosens' sudden exit. "I believed Robin would be on the field until 4:10 PM," he stated before the home match on DAZN. He remained tight-lipped about Gosens' future destination or the terms of his move. Rumors persisted that AC Florence was his new club. The Florentines had progressed to the group stage of the Conference League the previous day and were actively competing on an international stage, contrasting Union.
First Bundesliga matchup between them
Gosens' departure expedited the signing of Serbian striker Andrej Ilic. Berlin had borrowed him from French Ligue 1 side OSC Lille for a season. Despite the 24-year-old observing his new teammates' performance from the sidelines, Tom Rothe replaced him in a solid performance in Gosens' position.
The initial confrontation between both clubs in the top German league was a tense standoff, with few goal-scoring opportunities. Hollerbach's lead following a corner therefore came as a stunning surprise. The striker fired a shot from around 18 meters, and the ball inexplicably found its way past St. Pauli's goalkeeper Nikola Vasilj.
Following the interval, the game remained a tussle, with the hosts holding a slight advantage but failing to threaten Hamburg's net. Union defender Danilo Doekhi narrowly missed St. Pauli's goal with a curling shot in the 51st minute.
St. Pauli managed to gain some momentum thanks to the substitutions of Elias Saad and Oladapo Afolayan. The two promotion heroes injected speed to the wings. Despite having more opportunities, St. Pauli could not find the back of the net despite four additional minutes of play. Union's goalkeeper Rönnow saved the final chance.
In light of Gosens' sudden departure, Union Berlin had to adapt quickly, bringing in Serbia's Andrej Ilic on a loan from Lille. However, other transfers were necessary as Ilic watched from the sidelines while Tom Rothe filled Gosens' role.
union's new signing, Andrej Ilic, was initially an observer in the stands, allowing Tom Rothe to step into the role vacated by other departed player.
