Werder Bremen defeats Union Berlin: Grüll scores after heartbreak honor

Werder Bremen defeats Union Berlin: Grüll scores after heartbreak honor

On the evening of October 26, 2025, the eagerly awaited duel between Werder Bremen and Union Berlin kicked off in the Weserstadion. At 8:30 p.m. the two teams took to the pitch, accompanied by the sad news of the loss of Max Lorenz, a Werder legend and former national player, who died at the age of 86. This caused the entire stadium crowd to pause and applaud.

In the run-up to the game, the mood on the sidelines was already saturated with emotions. Both teams knew that they had to deliver sensational performances this season. Werder Bremen in particular wanted to take the momentum from the last games with them, while Union Berlin had a rather mixed performance after last season.

The gameplay

Union Berlin appeared combative in the first half, but were unable to create any clear scoring chances. The already mentioned long-range shots from Andrej Ilic and Ilyas Ansah were unsuccessful, while Werder Bremen tried to take the lead with a few good opportunities, including from Marco Grüll, but also couldn't find anything countable. A header from Danilo Doekhi in the 45th+2 minute went over the goal - so it remained exciting!

The second half brought the decision: Marco Grüll proved his skills with a strong solo in the 75th minute and scored the decisive 1-0 for Bremen. A few minutes later, coach Ole Werner's team delighted the fans with a strong performance. Union Berlin, which didn't have to complain defensively, couldn't find any acceleration to equalize in the final phase.

A look at the upcoming games

Werder Bremen will continue in the DFB Cup against Bielefeld on Wednesday at 8:45 p.m., while Union Berlin will play against Freiburg on Saturday, also at 3:30 p.m. After this matchday, Union remains in 10th place in the table with 10 points, while Werder Bremen was able to celebrate their second home win in a row. However, their record against Union last season was a different story, as Union won six out of ten matches there.

After the game, Christopher Trimmel from Union Berlin said: “It hurts because I had the feeling that it didn’t actually deserve a winner.” In his opinion it was a close game, and Victor Boniface from Werder also appreciated that Union is a strong defensive team, but emphasized: “But we won.”

With all these impressions and the ghosts of the past in the background, it remains to be seen how both teams will perform in the coming encounters. For Bremen it was another important step towards stable form, while Union had to put in a mature performance to avoid getting into trouble. The football world is looking forward to the future.