Union were very close to a top three finish, but three crucial away defeats against the three teams that finished above them late in the season ruined that opportunity. Coach Keller was delighted in the summer to make Felix Kroos a permanent signing and he trusted him that much that he made him a team captain straight away. Hosiner’s arrival also brought hope for better forward actions, but the unfortunate striker needed to be taken off on a stretcher in the opening round and with three more times injuring himself during the course of the campaign he never revealed his true potential.
That said, after opening the season without a win in three games Union went on to achieve six wins in the next seven rounds and, just like that, come the end of October the Irons found themselves in the thick of the promotion race. In fact Union even spent three weeks at the top of the three in the autumn and with Kroos and Kreilach orchestrating the midfield Keller’s men really looked like a team on a mission.
With seven points collected from their three home clashes vs. Stuttgart, Hannover and Eintracht Braunschweig in the first part of the season Union showed that they really mean business and to boost his attack the gaffer added to the squad in the winter the club’s legendary striker Polter. He immediately became the main starter up front and Union played their best football early in 2017. A staggering run of seven wins and a draw in the first eight matches after the winter break put the Irons in second place, but there was no time to be overenthusiastic with the top four teams split by just a point when March ended.
April and May were going to decide the fate of the promotion race and Union knew that they must earn at least one win from their three away tests against their direct rivals for the top positions. Unfortunately the Irons lost all of these three away matches, plus they suffered a painful 0:1 home defeat against the relegation threatened Erzgebirge Aue and, despite being so close, they failed to cross the line in the top three.
