Moroccan attacker Younes Ebnoutalib announced his arrival on the Bundesliga stage with a stunning hat-trick on his debut for Eintracht Frankfurt, though his personal landmark was ultimately overshadowed by a dramatic 3-3 stalemate at Union Berlin.
Union raced into an early lead inside three minutes when Marin Ljubicic's effort was deflected behind for a corner. Josip Juranovic delivered into the box, and despite Raphael Onyedika's defensive challenge, Emmanuel Latte Lath rose to power a header past goalkeeper Noah Atubolu.
Eintracht responded almost immediately. In the 10th minute, substitute Ebnoutalib pounced on a loose ball to punish weak defending and level the scores. Just nine seconds after the restart, he struck again, capitalizing on a poor touch from Leopold Querfeld and squeezing a shot over the line as Matheo Raab and Zeno Van Den Bosch failed to clear their lines.
The match continued its eccentric rhythm, with Eintracht largely controlling proceedings. Can Uzun missed a clear chance after Elias Baum's precise pass, and an official was forced off after sustaining an injury around the half-hour mark. Union showed resilience, with Ayoube Amaimouni testing the visitors, but Atubolu remained untroubled despite taking a blow to the head from Michel Aebischer before halftime.
After the break, Union pressed forward, though they struggled to force significant saves from Atubolu. Mauro Lustrinelli introduced Tim Skarke among three attacking changes in the 61st minute, but Skarke's initial effort from Tom Rothe's cross lacked precision.
Six minutes later, Ebnoutalib completed his hat-trick, making no mistake from a fortunate bounce off Baum, lashing a powerful volley into the net. Atubolu then produced a string of impressive saves, including a deflected free-kick, but finally succumbed from a Juranovic corner met by a towering header from Querfeld with 11 minutes remaining.
Union refused to yield, completing their comeback in the 92nd minute. Van Den Bosch headed the ball back to Querfeld, whose subsequent header was flicked home by substitute Skarke. The draw leaves Eintracht without a win in six previous head-to-head meetings against Union Berlin, a result that contrasts sharply with their recent 11-0 demolition of fifth-tier side SC St. Tonis in the DFB-Pokal.