FSV beat FCK

Mainz 05 take command in the opening hour against the 2. Bundesliga side

Marco Richter netted the final goal of the day at Bruchwegstadion.

1. FSV Mainz 05 also won their third pre-season friendly of the summer, beating 1. FC Kaiserslautern 4-1 (3-0) at Bruchwegstadion on Friday afternoon. Phillip Tietz, Sheraldo Becker, Paul Nebel and Marco Richter scored for Mainz in the 120-minute match played behind closed doors, while Mergim Berisha netted a consolation goal for the visitors.

Urs Fischer said after the match: “First and foremost, we wanted to get the basics right. That is what we work on again and again in training. Counter-pressing was also important to me, as was our behaviour after winning the ball. There were some good things, but also areas we still need to work on. You could see that the lads were exhausted after 60 minutes, which naturally played a role after the intense sessions. It was important for everyone to get more minutes in their legs. It was a good test against an aggressive opponent. I have been very pleased with the lads so far. They came back from their holidays with a good foundation, and we are benefiting from that in our work now. Easing off a little now will be good for recovery. At the training camp, it will then be about fine-tuning and working towards greater sharpness.”

First half lineup : Zentner - Martel, Nebel, Tietz, Maloney, Caci, Da Costa, Becker, Hanche-Olsen, Kohr (C), Nakuzola (40. Hong)

The Mainz 05 head coach sent out an experienced XI, while also placing his trust in young Rael Nakuzola in the defensive line. This blend of experience and youthful ambition had an immediate impact, with Mainz celebrating their first goal as early as the fourth minute when Tietz headed home a superbly delivered Nebel corner to give his side the lead. It was already the third time in as many pre-season friendlies that Tietz had opened the scoring. His strike partner Becker was not about to let that stand. After being denied by FCK goalkeeper Krahl in the sixth minute, he did better two minutes later. Following some excellent counter-pressing, the Mainz striker finished from the edge of the penalty area after a pass from Eric Martel to double the lead. After this early double blow, the visitors gradually grew into the game and had their first chance in the 19th minute through captain Marlon Ritter. Nevertheless, Mainz remained the more dominant side and were particularly alert in transition. Shortly before the first drinks break, Becker was brought down in the penalty area after a quick transition. Nebel converted the resulting penalty to make it 3-0.

In the second quarter, FSV continued to move the ball confidently through their own ranks. Only a misunderstanding between Robin Zentner and Dominik Kohr in the build-up briefly caused concern in the Mainz defence, but FCK striker Owen Gibs was unable to profit from the situation (34’). Mainz then repeatedly created good chances, but lacked the efficiency they had shown in the first quarter. First, Nebel fired wide from a promising position (42’), before Martel missed with an acrobatic effort (52’). Becker had the final notable attempt of the quarter (60’). The 3-0 scoreline was ultimately fully deserved, including by that margin.

Second-half lineup : Kinzig – Richter, Gruber, Bell, Potulski, Hong (80' Yamasaki) – Imafidon, Kawasaki, Böving – Haidara, Königsdörffer (88' Debrah)

Kinzig alert, Richter rounds off the scoring

At the start of the second hour, the hosts made a series of changes, with 17-year-old new signing Alynho Haidara making his debut in a Mainz 05 shirt. Initially, however, there was far less action in front of either goal than during the furious opening phase. It was not until the 78th minute that substitute Maximilian Kinzig was called into action for the first time, clearing in the nick of time 35 metres from his own goal. Shortly afterwards, Marco Richter crossed for Ransford Königsdörffer, who narrowly missed the ball with his head and was caught on the nose by Lautern goalkeeper Yannick Onohiol’s fist. That was the end of the new signing’s afternoon, and the visitors used their brief numerical advantage to pull a goal back, with Berisha tapping in from six metres. In the 90th minute, Kinzig was called upon again, making an excellent save with his foot to prevent a second goal after Erik Wekesser had been left free to shoot from ten metres out.

The final quarter of the friendly then belonged to FSV again, with Richter scoring Mainz’s fourth goal in the 99th minute. His shot from around 25 metres bounced just in front of goal, meaning Enis Kamga could only push the ball onto the underside of the crossbar, from where it found its way into the net. Haidara almost marked his debut with a goal in the closing stages, but the new signing from Ivory Coast narrowly missed a Böving cross (110’). Mainz therefore held on to their three-goal lead until the end, which was fully deserved, especially based on the first hour. After that, the game became more disjointed, not least because of the many substitutions on both sides.

After their third successful friendly of the summer, Mainz 05’s first-team players can now look forward to almost a week to themselves, while following individual training plans. The next public training session will take place next Thursday at 11:00. The following Saturday, Holstein Kiel will visit Bruchwegstadion, before Mainz depart for their ten-day training camp on Monday, 27 July.