FSV suffer first home defeat of 2026

1. FSV Mainz 05 suffered an unfortunate 1-0 defeat at home to SC Freiburg on Sunday evening. In a game of few highlights, Mainz created more chances than their opponents, especially in the first half. Former 05er Lucas Höler struck soon after the restart seemingly out of nowhere from a long throw-in. Although Mainz threw everything forward in the closing stages, Freiburg's defence conceded very little and ultimately secured three fortunate points. Even the comebacks of Nadiem Amiri and Anthony Caci couldn't change the result.

The coaching staff made two changes to the side that beat Strasbourg in midweek. Nikolas Veratschnig came in for captain Silvan Widmer, while Sheraldo Becker – who is ineligible to play in the Conference League this season – replaced Nelson Weiper.

Mainz start slow before missing host of chances

Both teams still seemed to be feeling the fatigue from their European matches earlier in the week. While Thursday evening had ended on a high note for both sides, the opening phase of this match was rather subdued. The visitors initially appeared slightly more active but were just as ineffective going forward as FSV. As a result, it took more than 20 minutes for the first real chance of the game. Nebel forced Noah Atubolu into action, with the goalkeeper saving a curling effort from the academy product. Atubolu was then relieved to see Danny da Costa’s follow-up effort sail over the bar (22’). This marked the start of a period of Mainz pressure, which at times put Freiburg on the back foot. A nearly four-minute-long spell of Mainz possession ended with a strike from distance by Stefan Posch which cannoned back off the post (26’). The 05ers kept pushing and could have taken the lead through Veratschnig, but he just couldn’t get the contact he wanted on the cross from Nebel (31’). Mainz had found their flow and created a number of chances against an increasingly defensive opposition. Becker was sent in behind by Kaishu Sano and crossed to Nebel, but the midfielder was challenged at the last second. Despite this strong 15-minute spell, FSV were unable to reward themselves with a goal. The game was largely uneventful from the 33rd minute onwards, and so the teams headed down the tunnel at half time with the score still 0-0.

Höler scores, FSV struggle to take chances

The restart could hardly have gone worse for Mainz. A long throw-in from Johan Manzambi was flicked on by Mathias Ginter into the path of Höler, whose looping header gave Batz no chance – 1-0 to Freiburg (47’). Mainz didn’t let the goal affect them, though, and quickly got on the attack. Becker struck a powerful effort from range, which Atubolu spilled, but managed to pounce on it before the onrushing Nebel. The visitors looked far better now than they had done before the break and looked to create more chances. Batz was forced into two fantastic saves to deny Manzambi and prevent Freiburg from doubling their advantage.

Urs Fischer made his first substitution after around an hour, bringing Amiri and Widmer on for Sota Kawasaki and Veratschnig. The game marked Amiri’s first appearance in nearly a month and a half. Just a minute later, the ball fell to a surprised Dominik Kohr, who fired wide from a tight angle (63’). What followed was another brief lull in play, with no chances at either end. 74 minutes in, Anthony Caci made his long-awaited return to the MEWA ARENA turf, having been sidelined since September. Mwene made way for him, while Armindo Sieb came on for Nebel at the same time. Widmer then had a fantastic chance after being set up by Amiri, but his shot was straight at Atubolu (79’). Mainz were firmly on the front foot again and could have scored a deserved equaliser. Becker managed a shot on the turn in the Freiburg box, but it sailed over (81’). Mainz then threw everything forward by bringing on Weiper for da Costa, effectively finishing the match in a 4-2-4 formation. This didn’t make things any easier, as Freiburg had already dropped deep and were able to deal with Mainz’s long balls without too much trouble. It wasn’t until the second minute of stoppage time that a Posch cross found Sieb’s head, but he failed to get it on target (90+2). It was the final half-chance of a match that Mainz should never have lost against a Freiburg side that focused more on defending than attacking. The visitors were somewhat fortunate to leave the MEWA ARENA with all three points.

Mainz’s eight-point cushion on the relegation zone remains intact, despite the first home loss of 2026. The 05ers head to Strasbourg for the second leg of their UEFA Conference League quarter-final on Thursday (21:00 CEST), before a trip to Mönchengladbach sees them close out Bundesliga matchday 30 next Sunday (19:30 CEST).