Bundesliga: Mainz Look to Catch Bayern Munich Off Guard

FSV Mainz 05 vs Bayern Munich

Mainz’s run for a Top 10 spot continues at home this weekend when they’ll host Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich at the Mewa Arena.

The 05ers are currently at 10^th with 39 points, but with Borussia Monchengladbach, VfL Wolfsburg, and VfL Bochum right behind them, they must regain their form and put up a fight against the mighty Bavarians.

Bayern Munich just clinched their 10^th successive domestic title following their victory against arch-rivals Borussia Dortmund. But since they’ve ticked off one of their main objectives and because they’re already out of the Champions League, they might not be in the mood to play in this no-bearing game.

Talking Points

Mainz on a major slide

Mainz have fallen off considerably after a great start to their campaign following Bo Svensson’s appointment. At one point, the 05ers were in the Top 5 and contending for a European berth, but their hopes were dashed following a poor run of Bundesliga 2022 results.

April hasn’t been kind to them as they’re winless in their last five games. During the said stretch, Bo Svensson’s side were outscored 11-4.

Their most recent loss against VfL Wolfsburg was their worst one yet as they’ve conceded five first-half goals for the second time in their Bundesliga history. The last time that this happened was when RB Leipzig demolished them with a scoreline of 8-0 back in November 2019.

Heading into this match, Mainz have nothing to lose at this point and they have the quality players who can give Julian Nagelsmann and co. problems.

The combo of Jonathan Burkardt and Karim Onisiwo are likely to lead their frontline once more. Burkardt is their top scorer with 10 goals and three assists, while Onisiwo has five goals and seven assists.

Marcus Ingvartsen is another player to look out for this weekend since he’ll assume a bigger responsibility with third-leading scorer Lee Jae-Sung set for a spell in the sidelines due to a knee ligament injury. The Danish forward has four goals so far.

Bayern Munich look ahead for the summer

From the freshly-minted championship t-shirts to the free flowing German beer – the Allianz Arena last Sunday had the hallmarks of a title celebration. After all, it’s unheard of to see a club win the league title for 10 consecutive seasons.

And now that their main job is done, Bayern Munich can look ahead for the summer where they’ll face some uncertainty – particularly about Robert Lewandowski’s current contract that will expire in 2023.

The Polish striker has made it clear that he wants a new long-term deal signed with the club now, rather than thinking about moving elsewhere if that doesn’t happen.

He’ll look to prove himself worthy of such deal in these next few games, starting against Mainz, although it’s no longer necessary. The same can be said for Thomas Muller, Manuel Neuer, and Serge Gnabry – whose contracts also expire next summer.

Leroy Sane, Niklas Sule, Jamal Musiala, and Marcel Sabitzer are also the names to watch for in the away team as all of them will contend for their spots in the starting lineup after coming off the bench last game.

History

Bayern Munich have won eight of their last nine Bundesliga matches against Mainz and they have a solid win percentage away from home against them (73-per cent, 11 of 15 won).

The defending champions have also won five Bundesliga games in a row – pushing their tally to 24 total league wins this term.

Mainz have always scored the first goal in their last three encounters against Bayern Munich, which is not done by any other team among the current German top-flight sides.

However,  the 05ers have only won once in those three instances (W1, L2), and the said victory was in April 2021 at home via a 2-1 scoreline where goals from Jonathan Burkardt and Robin Quaison were enough to counter Robert Lewandowski’s added time goal.

Their reverse fixture was in December 2021 where Bayern Munich came out 2-1 winners too as Kingsley Coman and Jamal Musiala gave the Bavarian giants the advantage for good following Karim Onisiwo’s 22^nd-minute goal.

Betting Tip

Bayern Munich are undoubtedly the favourites to win here as per the SBOTOP Bundesliga 2022 odds. They are priced at 1.52, while Mainz are installed at 5.20 and a draw is at 4.50 in the 1×2 market.

Since there’s not much incentive to go all out for this game, we expect Julian Nagelsmann to bring in several youth players or seldom-used players to play, and it would still be too much for Mainz to overcome.

 

●●●

CHECK OUT OUR BLOG FOR MORE FOOTBALL STORIES & ODDS

Stay updated with everything sports and betting.

Follow us on social Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.