Brenden Aaronson ends six-month goal drought with Union Berlin winner

SINSHEIM, GERMANY – FEBRUARY 17: Robin Gosens (R) and Brenden Aaronson of 1.FC Union Berlin celebrate after the team’s victory following the Bundesliga match between TSG Hoffenheim and 1. FC Union Berlin at PreZero-Arena on February 17, 2024 in Sinsheim, Germany. (Photo by Helge Prang/Getty Images)

Brenden Aaronson, at long last, has a goal for Union Berlin.

The U.S. men’s national team attacker got off the mark in the 2023-24 Bundesliga season with an 84th minute winner as the Berlin side scraped out a 1-0 win at Hoffenheim on Saturday.

Aaronson had not scored in competitive play for club or country in just over six months, dating back to a goal for the USMNT in a September 2023 friendly win over Oman. That includes 26 appearances in all competitions with Union this season, despite generally playing as an attacking midfielder.

You have to go all the way back to August 21, 2022 to find Aaronson’s last last goal at the club level, when the 23-year-old helped his side to a 3-0 win over Chelsea.

Aaronson’s loan to Union has been rocky enough that rumors had him heading back to Leeds this winter, though Aaronson ultimately insisted on sticking it out in Berlin.

Maybe the New Jersey native knew something no one else did. At the time those rumors emerged, Die Eisernen were only a month removed from a nine-game losing streak in the league. Relegation still loomed as a distinct possibility in what would have been a stunning fall after qualifying for the Champions League in the previous season.

Since Nenad Bjelica took over as manager in late November, however, things have turned around. Union’s 5W-2D-3L record might not be the kind of form to get back into Europe, but it has steered the club into mid-table security, eight points clear of the relegation zone.

While Aaronson hasn’t been first-choice for the Croatian coach, he has gotten on the field in every match since Bjelica replaced Urs Fischer.

His goal on Saturday may help him take a step beyond being fresh legs off the bench. With both teams down to 10 men after Stanley Nsoki and Kevin Volland were sent off in first-half stoppage time, there was plenty of room for Union to get out in transition.

Three substitutes ended up creating the goal. Jérôme Roussillon sent the ball along the left flank for Yorbe Vertessen, who peeled out to the wing with a hard run. Aaronson kept pace, and after Vertessen offered a cutback from the endline, the USMNT man guided a simple finish past Hoffenheim goalkeeper Oliver Baumann.

Watch Aaronson’s first Union Berlin goal

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— wants live stream? follow @GoalSpotHD (@LonnieTrus54707) February 17, 2024

This article originally appeared on Pro Soccer Wire: Brenden Aaronson ends six-month goal drought with Union Berlin winner