Nebel nets brace as Mainz beat Frankfurt

1. FSV Mainz 05 took all three points in the Bundesliga for the first time in over a month in the Rhine-Main derby against local rivals Eintracht Frankfurt, giving them a little distance from the sides beneath them. A perfect week for the 05ers was crowned by a Paul Nebel brace, following the win against Bremen and the 2-0 victory over Olomouc in midweek. His opener was cancelled out by Nathaniel Brown before half time, however Nebel struck again in the 89th minute to win all three points for the 05ers. Mainz were the more threatening side before half time, while Frankfurt looked better after the break, meaning a draw would not have been totally unfair on either side.

Urs Fischer made just one change to the side that started the historic win over Olomouc, opting for Sheraldo Becker in place of Nelson Weiper, who started as a substitute.

Early Mainz lead doesn’t last long

The game took just 15 seconds to see its first piece of action, as an aerial duel between Philipp Tietz and Fares Chaibi saw the Mainz man booked. Nevertheless, it was the home side who had control over the game in the early stages, despite the visitors having the higher percentage of possession. A quick counter-attack in the fourth minute fizzled out, however the 05ers didn’t have to wait long for a real chance. Kaishu Sano played it to Becker, who quickly sent Nebel in behind. His effort from just inside the box took a deflection, leaving Michael Zetterer with absolutely no chance – 1-0 Mainz (6’). Despite strong support from a large group of travelling fans, it took Frankfurt a while to get into the game. However, they took their first opportunity ruthlessly. Jean-Matteo Bahoya was given too much space on the left-hand side, beating da Costa and playing a perfect cut-back into the path of Nathaniel Brown. The full-back’s first-time finish was too well placed for Daniel Batz to even have a chance of stopping it (20’). A frustrating setback from Mainz’s perspective, but Urs Fischer’s side responded quickly. Just two minutes after the equaliser, Sano had a shot from the edge of the box following a corner routine, but his effort went just wide (23’).

Other than their goal, the visitors struggled to even get close to Mainz’s penalty area. The 05ers, on the other hand, posed much more of a threat, despite having less of the ball. Sano won the ball back in the 35th minute, before Becker then set Nebel up again, however the midfielder’s shot was blocked by Theate. Nebel then returned the favour two minutes later, but Becker was denied by Zetterer. 43 minutes in, Dominik Kohr very nearly turned the ball into his own net trying to clear a cross. FSV had a series of corners towards the end of the half, but they ultimately came to nothing. Nevertheless, the 05ers were the better and more dangerous side throughout the first half.

Frankfurt look better, Nebel with final say

While Mainz returned unchanged after the break, Frankfurt made one substitution, bringing on Ellyes Skhiri for goalscorer Brown. The opening minutes of the second half in the sold-out MEWA ARENA were more subdued than the first. The visitors first threatened after an hour, as Ritsu Doan crossed from the left, and Chaibi’s header struck the crossbar (60’). Mainz immediately responded through Jae-sung Lee, who sent Becker in behind. The striker rounded Zetterer, but couldn’t find the finish from a tight angle. Silvan Widmer followed up, but referee Tobias Stieler had already blown for a foul. Fischer made his first change after 68 minutes, bringing Weiper and Nikolas Veratschnig on for Tietz and the impressive Phillipp Mwene. Batz made a big save shortly after, tipping a Doan effort around the post. 

There was to be controversy as we headed into the closing stages. Da Costa won the ball near the halfway line against Burkardt, drove forward down the right and set up Becker, who went down in the penalty area. After reviewing the incident, Stieler identified two fouls, and since Da Costa’s came first, the decision was no penalty (78’). Sota Kawasaki came on for Lee three minutes later. Becker had a huge chance just six minutes before the end of normal time. Set up by Sano, the striker beat Zetterer one-on-one, but could only watch as his effort hit both posts and came back towards him. No matter, as the winner followed shortly after. A textbook counter-attack led by Sano resulted in a perfect cross from Widmer onto the head of Weiper. The striker’s effort was straight at Zetterer, but Nebel reacted quickest and tapped home the rebound to restore the Mainz lead. The stadium erupted, but Mainz still had to survive eight minutes of stoppage time as Frankfurt threw everything forward.

The 05ers go again after the international break with an away trip to face TSG Hoffenheim (15:30 CEST) on Holy Saturday (4th April).