Eintracht Frankfurt vs Mainz

Eintracht Frankfurt’s stuttering Bundesliga season continues at Deutsche Bank Park as they meet out-of-sorts Mainz 05.

An underwhelming 3-1 defeat at TSG Hoffenheim last time out condemned Eintracht Frankfurt to a tenth consecutive Bundesliga match without winning (D5, L5), curtailing their hopes of returning into the race for European placings. With only three games left, ‘Die Adler’ trail sixth-placed Bayer Leverkusen by five points, meaning the upcoming DFB-Pokal final is their safest route into next season’s European competition. Back to Deutsche Bank Park, where they’re unbeaten in their last eight Bundesliga outings (W4, D4), Oliver Glasner’s men are looking to end a frustrating run of four straight home league draws against a Mainz side they defeated 1-0 in this corresponding fixture in 2021/22. But it’s worth noting that victory remains Frankfurt’s solitary success in their last four top-flight H2Hs on home turf (D1, L2).

With three of those four matches featuring under 2.5 goals and seeing the winner on the day keep a clean sheet, you’d assume a low-scoring theme could be the order of the day. However, five of Mainz’s last six Bundesliga matches have produced three or more goals, although back-to-back losses by an aggregate score of 6-2 in the lead-up to this match-up suggest ‘Die Nullfünfer’ could be on the receiving end of a high-scoring affair. Patchy away form has been a thorn in Mainz’s side in 2023, as their seven Bundesliga matches on the road this calendar year have fluctuated between different results (W2, D3, L2). But if you’re seeking a common denominator, five of those seven games have seen both teams on the scoresheet, highlighting the potential for a back-and-forth encounter.