Narrow defeat in first leg against Rosenborg

1. FSV Mainz 05 suffered a narrow, but ultimately deserved, defeat in the first leg of the playoffs for a place in the group stage of the UEFA Conference League, but still have every chance of progressing after their 2-1 defeat at Rosenborg BK. The 05ers took a surprise lead through Nadiem Amiri, before the hosts equalised from the penalty spot through Dino Islamovic. Ole Saeter then snatched the win for the Norwegian side at the death.

After the victory in Dresden, boss Bo Henriksen made three expected changes, as Silvan Widmer, Arnaud Nordin and Armindo Sieb were replaced by Anthony Caci, Phillip Mwene and Jae-Sung Lee.

The hosts look threatening

Rosenborg started bravely and more attacking than a lot of people expected them to, while FSV needed a few minutes at the start of the game to settle down and get used to things. Robin Zentner needed to be awake early, as after six minutes he was forced into his first save of the match, getting his fingertips to a shot from Santeri Väänänens. Rosenborg looked to wait for the right moment to pounce on Mainz’s sloppy play and break through. FSV’s number one was forced into another save just three minutes later, as Jesper Reitan-Sunde tried his luck following a right-sided counter attack (9’). The next chance fell to the visitors, who had finally worked their way into the game. Caci crossed from the right wing onto the head of Benedict Hollerbach, whose effort was saved by Sander Tangvik in the Rosenborg goal (11’). Not a lot happened after that, as both teams failed to create any real chances. The teams cancelled each other out, meaning that the Bundesliga side had to rely on a moment of individual brilliance in order to break the deadlock. After 26 minutes, Paul Nebel laid the ball back to Amiri, who unleashed a rocket from 25 yards out to score the first goal of the game.

Mainz could be considered fortunate to be in front, however, this didn’t give them much more confidence. The Norwegians only pressed for the equaliser further, as Zentner saved a close range attempt from Bolkan Nordli with his face (39’). However, the goalkeeper was left powerless shortly after as a challenge on Reitan-Sunde by Kaishu Sano saw the Rosenborg player go tumbling to the ground. VAR got involved, and after going over to the screen, referee Oleg Derevinsky was left with no choice but to point to the spot. Dino Islamovic stayed calm and equalised for the hosts shortly before the break.

FSV more robust, Rosenborg with the late winner

Bo Henriksen made a change during half time, bringing Andreas Hanche-Olsen onto the field in his home country in place of Dominik Kohr, who was on a booking. The first chance of the second half fell to the visitors in the 48th minute, as Amiri beautifully set up Lee, but despite the South-Korean’s best efforts, Tangvik was able to save at his near post. The fast start proved to be just a flash in the pan, as chances became few and far between. The next real noteworthy moment came when Hollerbach was replaced by Sieb after roughly an hour. Mainz had more control over things than their opponents without creating any real goal-scoring opportunities. 

It was only towards the end of proceedings that chances started to arise, with Zentner being forced into another good save after a shot from Aslak Witry from the right-hand side of the box (74’). Caci looked to add another down the other end, but his shot crept centimetres wide of the post. While Nordin and Maxim Leitsch entered the fray for Lee and Stefan Bell in the final few minutes, it was the hosts who decided the game at the death. Saeter got on the end of a delicate cross to the back post, where the striker only had to nod it across the line from very close range (90’). FSV found no response in injury time, meaning they need to score at least once in the second leg just to force extra-time. In order to progress to the group stages after 90 minutes, the Bundesliga side will need to win by two or more goals.