Mainz 05 vs. Borussia Dortmund preview: Can BVB claim consecutive victories?
After beating Augsburg 4-3 at the weekend, Borussia Dortmund will look to claim a second straight win when they face Mainz 05 on Wednesday.
Mainz 05
Mainz are winless in five league matches after they returned from the winter break with a 1-1 draw against Stuttgart. Marcus Ingvartsen scored from the spot to cancel out Stuttgart's opener before half time, and with neither side was able to find a winner in the second half, they had to settle for a point.
With Mainz currently sat in 12th position, they will need to improve their home form if they are to start moving up the league table. Only Augsburg have collected fewer home points than the seven Mainz have picked up at the MEWA Arena this season. Bo Svensson's side have recorded one victory, four draws and two defeats in their seven Bundesliga home matches.
With 20 goals from 16 games, Mainz are one of the lowest scorers in the league, with only three teams registering fewer goals. Meanwhile, five of their eight home goals took place in one match when Mainz claimed a comfortable 5-0 victory over FC Köln. Facing a Dortmund side that have conceded at least two goals in their last three league games could provide the hosts with a chance to improve their form in the final third.
Team News
Robin Zentner, Delano Burgzorg, Jonathan Burkardt and Marlon Mustapha will miss out through injury, while Dominik Kohr is suspended due to an accumulation of yellow cards.
Borussia Dortmund
In their first game of the new year, Dortmund had to take the lead on four occasions to claim all three points in an entertaining seven-goal thriller with Augsburg. Jude Bellingham, Nico Schlotterbeck, Jamie Bynoe-Gittens and Giovanni Reyna all got on the scoresheet to guide Dortmund to a 4-3 home victory.
Dortmund head into matchday 17 in sixth place, two points adrift of the Champions League places. As they bid to continue their push to move into the top four, they will be targeting a second straight victory on Wednesday.
Their recent away form does not inspire too much confidence, though, as Dortmund have lost five of their last six away matches. After shipping at least two goals in all five of those away defeats, they will need to improve defensively if they are to start winning on their travels on a consistent basis.
Dortmund will take confidence from the fact that they have won each of their last five Bundesliga away meetings with Mainz.
Team News
Edin Terzić has confirmed that Thomas Meunier and Mateu Morey are unavailable, while Marco Reus is also unlikely to feature. Dortmund will also be without the services of Bellingham, who will serve a one-match suspension after picking up his fifth yellow card of the Bundesliga season against Augsburg.