FC Bayern host Mainz at the Allianz Arena on Saturday for Matchday 25 in the Bundesliga (kick-off at 3.30pm CET, live coverage on fcbayern.com and in the FC Bayern app with our text commentary and web radio). Fresh from advancing to the last eight in the Champions League, the Bavarians want yet another big result against the relegation-threatened 05ers. Here’s all you need to know ahead of the game in our preview.
Check out the best photos from final training on Friday:
State of play
The motto for Bayern this week is to take that momentum from the Champions League into this league game. An excellent team performance on Tuesday saw the Bundesliga champions beat Lazio 3-0 at the Allianz Arena to overturn a 1-0 first-leg deficit in the round of 16 and progress to the quarter-finals. “It gives you encouragement and takes some pressure off your shoulders. It was good for us. We hope we can play with the same energy again,” said head coach Thomas Tuchel at his press conference on Friday.
A late equaliser saw Bayern held to a 2-2 draw in Freiburg in their last Bundesliga outing. It means the gap to leaders Bayer Leverkusen is now 10 points. However, the phrase ‘give up’ does not appear in dictionaries at Bayern. With 10 games left to play, it means there are 30 points on offer. “There's an area between giving up and a statement of intent - and that's called reality. The gap is very big. That's realistic. For us it's about being more stable and finding new stability. That always starts with the next step. We need to win, win, win,” stated Tuchel. “Leverkusen no longer feel us breathing down their neck. We're to blame there. But that doesn't release us from our duty to give everything to win the game.”
Read more from Tuchel at his press conference here:
Opponent: Mainz
Mainz are in grave danger of dropping out of the Bundesliga. They have just 16 points from their 24 games to sit 17th in the table. They are only one shy of Köln in 16th and the play-off spot, but the gap to safety in 15th is now nine points. The 05ers brought in another new coach in February with Bo Henriksen and have earned four points from his three games in charge, including a tight 2-1 loss to Leverkusen. Last weekend they managed a 1-1 draw at home to Borussia Mönchengladbach. “We’ve provided reasons in recent weeks to believe in ourselves. Obviously, we know where we’re playing at the weekend, how good Bayern are,” said coach Henriksen.
Read up on the facts ahead of the match:
Team news
As well as the injured Kingsley Coman (MCL), Noussair Mazraoui (hamstring), Tarek Buchmann (muscular) and Bouna Sarr (ACL), Bayern will also be without Aleksandar Pavlovic against Mainz due to suspension after the midfielder picked up his fifth yellow card of the season against Freiburg. Sacha Boey is back training after his hamstring injury and could potentially return to the fold on Saturday.
Mainz have three players suspended in Dominik Kohr, Leandro Barreiro and Jessic Ngankam. Anthony Caci returns from a one-game ban, while Edimilson Fernandes and Andreas Hanche-Olsen are once again options in defence after their respective injuries.
What the coaches say
We will once again expect the maximum from us and hope that the win against Lazio gives us the assurance and confidence to follow it with more wins.
Thomas Tuchel
We know we can hurt them. We have to be brave. Only then do we have a chance of getting anything from the game.
Bo Henriksen (Mainz)
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