SV 07 Elversberg vs. 1. FSV Mainz 05 preview: Die Elv and 05ers meet after cup upsets

Elversberg and Mainz will hope to end their respective two-game losing streaks on Friday after both sides were knocked out of the DFB-Pokal.

Elversberg 

Vincent Wagner's side created plethora of chances against 2. Bundesliga's cellar-dwellers Darmstadt, but their cup run came to an end with a 2-0 home defeat. With their poor second-half performance in Leipzig to add to the cup disappointment, the Bundesliga debutants now need a reaction in front of their supporters at Waldstadion Kaiserlinde.

A win on Friday would put the minnows level on points with third-placed SC Freiburg before the rest of the matchday 8 action over the weekend. Since they were everyone's favorites for relegation in pre-season, Die Elv's first few months in top-flight league has been a welcome surprise.

Team News

Former FC Bayern youth player Lasse Günther and the captain Lukas Pinckert played the entire game on Tuesday, but it's not yet clear whether they will be available for this one. Noah Darvich and Jan Gyamerah are also not expected to be fit in time for Friday's clash.

Mainz 

The only Bundesliga team yet to drop points away from home this season, Mainz also have a chance to tie Bayer Leverkusen and Freiburg with their fourth victory on the road. Surprisingly, Urs Fischer's side have lost each of their last three games at Mewa Arena.

However, their cup exit did came away at Bochum, who are yet to win at home in 2. Bundesliga. Before Fischer introduced some of his regular starters off the bench, Uwe Rösler's men took the lead in the first action of the second-half on their way to a 2-0 victory.

Team News

Nadiem Amiri will hope to return to the side after missing the cup action due to a knee injury. Finnish midfielder Otto Ruoppi could make his first appearance since the international break. Robin Zentner will also hope to regain his spot after he was named in the squad for the cup duel.

Head-to-head

The clubs previously met twice at the same stadium in the DFB-Pokal, with Mainz advancing to the next round both times.

Predicted Lineups 

Click here to see our predicted Lineups for SV Elversberg vs. Mainz 05.