Sieb: “It was important to look at things positively”

It’s taken Armindo Sieb a while to get going since he joined FSV in summer 2024. His fitness repeatedly played a role in determining his game time, as boss Bo Henriksen rarely trusted the Bayern loanee to play more than 60 minutes of football, even subbing the attacker on and then off again. The 22-year-old admits that there were times he struggled and had to look within himself to find the answers; he chose to work hard and go the extra mile. Sieb, for the first time this season, was given the nod from the start against Augsburg and gave an impression of how things could get better in the future. He did score his third Mainz goal during his 80 minutes on the pitch, but more importantly, he followed his instructions and played a key role in defending from the front and “annoying” the defenders. This delighted his boss, who came out after the game and praised his striker’s performance.

Sieb made no attempt to hide his joy once the match was over, as he enjoyed the praise heaped upon him and the fact that he played a part in the team’s first Bundesliga win of the season. “I’m really happy and I reckon I earned that goal today,” said Sieb after the final whistle. Playing football and helping the team is the most important thing for the striker, who added that he wants to continue off the back of last weekend’s performance. “Every week is another chance to prove in training that you should be in the starting eleven. At the end of the day, it’s the coach’s decision, but it’s my responsibility to make sure that he feels like he has to pick me.”

A personal struggle

After proving his worth in Augsburg, the striker is keen to keep performing well and show that his skills can be relied upon. He admits that the doubts around him, combined with the lack of playing time, have had an effect on him. Although he always appears to be in a good mood and likes to joke around – especially since he is a "positive person" by nature - things were sometimes quite different at home. “I definitely wasn’t always in a good mood, even if it didn’t seem that way at training. My girlfriend and my family helped me massively, as did the team – they showed me that they always believed in me.” Sieb chose to look at this difficult time in his still young career as an opportunity to ask himself questions: “What do I want? Where do I want to go in my career?” The answer was clear: “I want to play football and I want to always be playing football. I knuckled down and worked on things such as my fitness, which was crucial for me to get to this point now. I think I could have played 80 minutes last season, but I wasn’t quite able to do all the things the coach wanted from me at that point in time. I’m proud of myself for putting in the extra work which is now paying off. It was important to look at things positively. I’m still young and only just starting my career, which means I can still change things around. Realising that was the important piece of the puzzle for me and meant I was clear in what my next steps had to be. I want to change things for the benefit of my career, and I have the time to do that now.”

Sieb now feels even more at home in Mainz: “I’m really happy and comfortable here. Even when I wasn’t playing that much, I always got support from the team. It’s really important – the idea of solidarity isn’t just a cliché and shouldn’t be taken for granted. I doubt anyone in the squad would even suggest they didn’t want to be here.” The atmosphere in and around the club has only grown since Sieb and FSV were catapulted back onto the European stage, with the attacker emphasising that the fans’ unconditional support has been a real positive right from the start. “It feels like the home games are always sold out, which I’m not sure was always the case. To now be able to play European football is amazing – not everyone is in a position to say that. We know what we have to do and we’re really excited to get the chance to prove ourselves in another competition. I think it’s really special for the fans as well; you could see and feel that during the play-off games.”

“The idea of solidarity isn’t just a cliché”

Before the 05ers travel to Nicosia (2nd October, 18:45 CEST), a duel with Borussia Dortmund awaits at the sold out MEWA ARENA on Saturday afternoon (15:30 CEST). This will be another test for FSV, as they look to build on their recent success. The same goes for Sieb, who is also looking to continue in the same form: “We have to fight and win our challenges. If we do that like we did in Augsburg, I’m sure we’ll put in a good performance. Of course, I’d love to score again, but the most important thing is helping the team win with my performance. After two narrow defeats, it’s time for a win at home,” said Sieb, who would make another big contribution by scoring his first MEWA ARENA goal.