Union Berlin will turn to Marie-Louise Eta for Saturday’s meeting with Wolfsburg at Stadion An der Alten Forsterei after parting ways with Steffen Baumgart in the wake of last weekend’s 3-1 defeat to Heidenheim. The 34-year-old steps in with Union stuck in a run that has left them short of momentum and Wolfsburg arriving with relegation pressure of their own.
Eta is no stranger to the dugout. She became Union’s first female assistant manager in November 2023, then led the team from the touchline in January 2024 when they beat SV Darmstadt 1-0 during Nenad Bjelica’s suspension. Before this appointment, she was working as Union’s Under-19 head coach.
Union’s situation has tightened quickly. They have won only two of their 14 league matches in 2026 and just one of their last six outings, the 1-0 victory over Freiburg on 15 March 2026. They have won only once on their own turf in 2026 and have dropped 11 points across their five most recent games. Even so, they sit seven points above St Pauli, who occupy the relegation playoff spot, with five games remaining.
That cushion is useful, but not yet secure, Eta said in effect, and the numbers behind it explain why. Union cannot afford another flat afternoon at home, especially against a side that has spent much of the spring trying to stop the slide. Wolfsburg are 17th with 21 points, seven points short of automatic safety and four shy of the relegation playoff place.
Dieter Hecking was brought in on 8 March 2026 after Daniel Bauer struggled at Volkswagen Arena, but the change has not solved everything. Hecking has lost three of his first four games in charge, starting with a 1-1 draw against Hoffenheim before the 6-3 defeat to Bayer Leverkusen on 4 April 2026. Wolfsburg have also lost five and drawn two of their away matches in 2026, a record that leaves little room for comfort in Berlin.
Union may also have to adjust their attack if injuries bite. Jeong Woo-yeong could miss the match because of a knock, David Preu is sidelined, and Robert Skov is a doubt with a calf injury. If those options are unavailable, Andrej Ilic and Oliver Burke could start up top, with Janik Haberer and Derrick Koh supporting them from the wing-back positions.
For Union, the game is as much about stabilizing the season as it is about style or symmetry. For Wolfsburg, it is another chance to pull themselves away from the bottom three before the table becomes harder to outrun.
