Mainz come away with a well-deserved point in Freiburg

The wait goes on for 1. FSV Mainz 05’s first away win of the season, although the draw against SC Freiburg on matchday 30 of the Bundesliga season is the fifth game in a row that the 05ers have gone without a loss. FSV are now level on points with VfL Bochum thanks to the result and have jumped above the Blues into 15th place in the standings due to a superior goal difference. Jonny Burkardt’s strike in the 40th minute cancelled out Michael Gregoritsch’s early opener in Freiburg. Both sides struggled to create clear-cut opportunities in the second half, though a Mainz away win looked to be on the cards.

Bo Henriksen named an unchanged starting XI for the third game in a row, showing faith in the players that helped propel FSV to spectacular victories over SV Darmstadt and TSG Hoffenheim at the MEWA ARENA.

The 05ers dominated proceedings and managed to equalise towards the end of the first half

Both sides appeared reserved for the first five minutes or so, before the game exploded to life with SCF’s first real chance of the encounter. The hosts broke quickly down Mainz’s left flank and Ritsu Doan put an inch-perfect ball in towards Michael Gregoritsch. Freiburg’s number 38 was completely unmarked in the box and nodded the ball past Robin Zentner to make it 1-0 in the sixth minute. The 05ers found it tough to break down the stubborn Freiburg defence at first, but began to play with some much-needed dynamism as the first half wore on. Two Nadiem Amiri set-pieces helped FSV to truly threaten SCF’s lead for the first time. Jae-sung Lee and Andreas Hanche-Olsen both managed to get their heads on the midfield maestro’s crosses, but Freiburg managed to scramble the ball to safety on both occasions. Mainz continued to impose themselves and deserved to be level. Dominik Kohr’s audacious chip and Anthony Caci’s powerful strike both went just wide of the woodwork, while Amiri did not get enough dip on a free-kick which floated over the bar.

Although the 05ers had the upper hand in terms of chances, Christian Streich’s side still looked tidy for the most part. The Mainz pressure was clearly starting to get to the SCF players, however, as mistakes started to creep into their game. The home side had barely had a sniff since taking the lead but, all of a sudden, carved out two opportunities to double their advantage. Zentner was called into action after Gregoritsch pounced on a Kohr error, but the Austrian international was denied a brace by the keeper’s outstretched leg. The resulting corner led to pinball in the Mainz penalty area, but FSV were eventually able to clear their lines (31’). At the other end of the pitch, the 05ers were getting closer and closer to an equaliser. Jonathan Burkardt tested Noah Atubolu from around 15 yards out, but the SCF keeper was equal to his effort. Mainz continued to find space on the wings and cause chaos in the Freiburg box. Brajan Gruda managed to cut inside and tried to bend one into the far corner, but his shot went the wrong side of the post. The Mainz pressure eventually paid off with five minutes to go in the first half as they scored a richly-deserved equaliser. Caci whipped a ball in towards Burkardt, who was lurking in the six-yard box. The 23-year-old swept the ball into the back of the net to make it 1-1 heading into the break.

A more even second half

Leandro Barreiro picked up a knock towards the end of the first 45, so he was replaced by Tom Krauß as the sides emerged from the dressing rooms. The 05ers picked up right where they left off and the feeling around the Europa-Park-Stadion that there was more than a point for them in this match was palpable. Just like at the very beginning of the game, however, it took both teams some time to truly trouble the scoreline in the second half. Substitute Merlin Röhl led a promising counterattack for the hosts and laid the ball off to Gregoritsch, but the goalscorer’s effort flew wide of the mark (57’). Lukas Kübler met a cross powerfully with his head five minutes later, but it sailed over the crossbar. It looked like much more of an evenly-matched encounter than it had been for the majority of the first half, as SCF were happy to pass the ball around in the visitor’s half and had a bigger influence on the flow of the match. Mainz only posed a serious threat to the hosts again in the 68th minute, but Sepp van den Bergh’s header ballooned over the frame of the goal.

With around 20 minutes left on the clock, Bo Henriksen opted to bolster M05’s attack by bringing Karim Onisiwo on for Brajan Gruda, who was more errant than he had been in the first 45. The closing stages of the game were dominated by challenges flying in from all angles as both sides strove to bag the goal that would see them walk away with the three points. The action on the pitch was intense, the players fired-up, but chances were increasingly hard to come by. The biggest chance of the last ten minutes or so fell to Onisiwo, who was not quite able to round Atubolu. The three minutes of injury time passed without major incident, as Mainz and Freiburg shared the points at the Europa-Park-Stadion.

SC FREIBURG - 1. FSV MAINZ 05 1-1 (1-1)

SCF: Atubolu - Keitel, Gulde, Kübler, Günter (56‘ Makengo), Höfler (85‘ Adamu), Eggestein, Grifo (56‘ Röhl), Doan, Höler, Gregoritsch

FSV: Zentner - Kohr, van den Berg, Hanche Olsen - Caci (85‘ Widmer), Barreiro (46‘ Krauß), Amiri, Mwene - Lee, Burkardt, Gruda (73‘ Onisiwo)

Goals: 1-0 Gregoritsch (6‘), 1-1 Burkardt (40‘)

Attendance: 34.300

Referee: Marco Fritz (Dominik Schaal & Marcel Pelgrim, Florian Badstübner)