BERLIN, Feb. 7 (Xinhua) -- Eintracht Frankfurt was held to a 1-1 draw at Union Berlin, extending both sides' negative runs in the Bundesliga on Friday.
It marked the first league appearance for Albert Riera as the Frankfurt coach. His team dominated possession for long spells but struggled to turn it into clear chances against an organized Union defense.
Play was interrupted early on after smoke from a choreographed display marking Union's 60th anniversary led to a six-minute pause.
Union gradually threatened before the break, while Frankfurt's long spells on the ball failed to translate into sustained danger.
The game opened up late. Union came close when Derrick Kohn struck the post, but it was Frankfurt who broke the deadlock moments later as Nathaniel Brown put the visitors 1-0 ahead in the 84th minute.
But the lead was short-lived. Frankfurt's Oscar Hojlund brought down Rani Khedira inside the penalty area and was shown a second yellow card, and Leopold Querfeld converted the ensuing penalty to level it at 1-1.
The draw extended Frankfurt's winless run to eight matches, leaving it seventh in the table, while Union is two places behind. Both teams remain without a league win in 2026.
"It is difficult to assess the game. In the final minutes we were the better side and still had hope of scoring another goal. In the first half, Frankfurt played very variably and caused us problems. In the end, it's a fair result," said Horst Heldt, managing director for men's professional football at Union Berlin.
"I have to say a lot of good things. Today I enjoyed seeing my new team. I know what I have to do with this team. I'm not looking at the results, I look at my team, and from there the results will come," said Riera. ■
