Da Costa: “We can’t take a step back now”

The 05ers have come out the other side of their packed start to the season after playing five games in just 14 days. As well as the first two Bundesliga matchdays, FSV had to play three decisive games across two competitions.  Due to the busy schedule, head coach Bo Henriksen rotated his players frequently, however, there was one player who was ever present across all five games: defender Danny da Costa. “Generally speaking, I have always been someone who has been able to deal with the strain of a busy schedule. After games I do more relaxed training sessions and work with physiotherapists and other coaches to help my recovery. The few days in between games are usually enough to get me back to full fitness,” said the 32-year-old in the build-up to the 05ers’ home game against RB Leipzig on Saturday (13th September, 15:30 CEST).

Recently, the German has had the opportunity to take a step back and rest during the international break: “It definitely helped mentally and I think that physically we’re all in good condition. These games were very important though – had we lost in Dresden and failed to turn the deficit around against Rosenborg, then we would have been knocked out of two competitions,” said da Costa. “That was a tough test for us mentally, especially at the start of the season, but it’s good to now be able to take a breather and process what we've been through.”

“I’m a big fan of European competitions”

With five games played, now seems a good time to look back on what has happened: The 05ers are currently winless in the league after an opening day loss to Köln and a draw in Wolfsburg the following week, however, they have been very successful in the DFB-Pokal and the Conference League. FSV overcame the challenges of Dresden in the domestic cup and Rosenborg BK in Europe, with da Costa expressing his overall satisfaction as to the start of the season : “Obviously we would like to have done more in the league, however, we can definitely look back on the last couple of weeks positively. We got a tough draw in both the Pokal and the Conference League play-offs, however, the way we asserted ourselves in the second leg against Rosenborg shows the sort of football we want to play this season; the sort of style that really characterised us last season.”

By qualifying for the league phase of the Conference League, the 05ers have guaranteed their spot in the competition until at least the end of the year, meaning they have more busy weeks to look forward to. According to da Costa, if the results are going Mainz’s way, then the stress and strain that comes with them becomes less of an issue: “When the results are going well, tough weeks become a lot easier to get through, as you can go into the games with a lot more positivity. That should be our goal – as long as things are going our way, the idea of fatigue begins to fade,” explained the 32-year-old, who is looking forward to getting started in the UECL league phase.  “I’m a big fan of European competitions, because it’s always special to play football at such a level. The fact we’re going to be playing under floodlights makes it even more special – and for the fans as well, who will be looking at all the cool places to travel to. The Conference League is the real treat for us on top of the day-to-day Bundesliga side of things. It’s a really good experience for us and we’ll look to stay in the competition for as long as we can.”

Withstanding the pressure

Da Costa already has experience playing on the European stage – the defender won the Europa League with Eintracht Frankfurt in 2022, but also knows the pressure that comes with playing play-off games. “I was already familiar with the pressure of the play-offs from my time in Frankfurt, as we narrowly lost the first leg in a tie. Despite that, we had a real feeling we could turn it around in the second leg, which we did,” said the 32-year-old, about a similar situation to that of this season, which he experienced six years ago. “I took this experience into the home game against Rosenborg and tried to show it on the pitch – I think we handled the whole situation brilliantly.”

Another new arrival can now help the 05ers across all three competitions, as deadline-day signing William Bøving looks to bolster Mainz’s attacking options. The Dane has completed a couple of training sessions already – and it hasn’t taken da Costa long to recognise one of the 22-year-old’s qualities. “I noticed straight away that he has a really good strike on him. My first impressions of him are good and it’s up to us now to support him, so that he can settle in quickly and help us to achieve things.” The new signing’s first involvement could come as soon as the next Bundesliga matchday, as the 05ers welcome RB Leipzig to the MEWA ARENA. Da Costa already has an idea of what awaits him and his teammates in the duel with the Saxons: “Leipzig play aggressive, direct and purposeful attacking football, so I expect an intense game which could go in either direction right from kick-off,” said the defender, who highlighted the guests’ attacking play. “They have a lot of quality, especially up front, which we need to get under control early. It’s important that as soon as that whistle goes we set the tone and show that we are the home team and that we want to win.”

“The little things made all the difference”

It’s been six games since the MEWA ARENA last celebrated a Mainz win in the Bundesliga, with five draws and the recent loss to 1. FC Köln. Da Costa has however been able to take some positives out of the last few home games: “I think we’ve played well in our recent home games – against Köln we played well for long periods and we could really have won the last game of last season against Leverkusen,” said the 32-year-old. “It’s been the little things that have made all the difference; we can’t take a step back now, instead we need to be more ruthless in front of goal in those decisive moments. If we can do that against Leipzig, then I’m sure we can win the game.”

“Incredible support” against Rosenborg

The support of the fans in the second leg of the tie with Rosenborg created an unbelievable atmosphere – one that da Costa really appreciated. “I’ve been at the club a couple of years now, but that atmosphere in the second leg against Rosenborg was something I’ve not experienced before – it was just incredible. You can feel the support growing, not just amongst the fans, but in the city as a whole – we are heading up in the right direction and lots of people want to be involved,” said the defender about the support from the Mainz fans, who he praises for their willingness to travel: “We notice this at away games, where the fans have to travel a long way to come and support us. The first leg against Rosenborg is a good example of this. I hope that we can continue to develop as we are and achieve success in order to pay back what we owe our fans.”