Substitute Amiri makes the difference as FSV beat Wolfsburg

1. FSV Mainz 05 secured their second home win of the season with a commanding 3-1 victory over VfL Wolfsburg that saw them close the gap to the teams above them in the table. Mohammed Amoura gave the visitors an early lead, which Phillip Tietz cancelled out after the break, having missed a penalty in the first half. A Stefan Bell header and a Nadiem Amiri penalty then sealed the Mainz victory. The end result could still be considered flattering to the guests, considering the first-half onslaught by the 05ers.

Head coach Urs Fischer made two changes from the side that lost in Köln, bringing new signing Stefan Posch in for Kacper Potulski and Benedict Hollerbach in for Silas, with the forward having recovered from his illness.

A very early setback

It was a start to forget for the 05ers, as has been the case so often recently, with Wolfsburg taking just over a minute to open the scoring. Sael Kumbedi beat Silvan Widmer down the line and crossed towards Amoura, who backheeled it over the line from just a couple of yards out to make it 1-0 Wolfsburg. An early setback that the 05ers should have responded to almost immediately. Tietz picked up on a loose back pass from Aaron Zehnter and found himself one-on-one with Grabara, but he couldn’t find the finish from a tight angle (5’). Wolfsburg’s pressure subsided after that, with the game mainly being played in the midfield until the 20th minute. From that point on, only one team looked like scoring. In the 22nd minute, Lee went down in the area after a challenge from Vinicius Souza, giving referee Daniel Siebert no choice but to point to the spot. January signing Tietz stepped up, but was denied by a strong hand from Grabara. The resulting corner landed on Stefan Bell’s head, but he could only send the ball over for a goal kick. FSV were certainly looking for the equaliser they deserved. Danny da Costa whipped a cross into the Wolfsburg box, which Tietz and Bell managed to control and set up Hollerbach, but the striker could not find a way past Grabara from six yards out (30’). It seemed as though Lady Luck had unfortunately forgotten about the 05ers. Tietz then had an effort from outside the box which just missed the far post (36’). The striker found himself in a promising position again just two minutes later, as he slid in to get on the end of a Paul Nebel cross, which Grabara was again equal to. Mainz were clearly the more attacking side, with the away side looking quite cautious in their play. Widmer then played a cross into the box, but it didn’t have enough power on it, making it difficult for Hollerbach to direct his header on target (40’). The fourth minute of stoppage time saw the 05ers wonder how on Earth they weren’t in front. Da Costa cut the ball back to Hollerbach, who beat Grabara, but Denis Vavro was there to clear the ball off the line (45+4’). The visitors’ half-time lead could hardly be more flattering.

A substitution makes the difference

Both sides remained unchanged going into the second half. There was a lack of chances for the first 15 minutes, however, that was about to change dramatically. A Nebel free kick could only find Grabara again, who managed to keep composed in amongst the chaos in his box. Urs Fischer made his first changes in the 65th minute, bringing the fit-again Nadiem Amiri and Phillipp Mwene on for Nebel and da Costa. The Austrian came on for his first appearance in almost two months. The substitutes didn’t take long to make their impact, with Amiri needing just two set pieces to turn the game around. First, his corner found the head of Tietz, who nodded home his first goal as a 05er to level the score (68’). The relief on his face was clear to see, following his earlier penalty miss. Just five minutes later, Bell managed to get on the end of a Hollerbach cross and prod it past Grabara to make it 2-1 to Mainz. The 05ers were clearly the better side and looked to seal the victory. Hollerbach could then only watch as his cross crashed off the crossbar (77’). Amiri turned from provider to scorer in the 83rd minute, as Mainz were awarded a penalty following a Dzenan Pejcinovic handball in the area. Siebert reviewed the footage at the VAR monitor and pointed to the Wolfsburg spot for the second time. Amiri stayed ice-cool and buried the penalty. The rest of the game almost resembled a victory lap for the 05ers, as it had been a long time since they’d been in such a comfortable position at the MEWA ARENA.

The celebratory mood remained unchanged throughout the seven minutes of stoppage time, as the 05ers earned a well-deserved three points in their second consecutive home victory. Mainz now sit 16th in the Bundesliga table with 15 points after 19 games. This puts them in the relegation playoff spot, a position that not so long ago seemed out of reach.

The 05ers go again in exactly a week, when they head to Leipzig on Saturday afternoon (15:30 CET). The week after that, Augsburg will visit the MEWA ARENA, as the 05ers prepare to celebrate the Mainz Karneval.