Well-deserved and hard-fought draw in Wolfsburg

1. FSV Mainz 05 took on VfL Wolfsburg in the final push before the much-needed international break, earning a deserved first point of the new season. Despite Aaron Zehnter’s early goal, Mainz never showed signs of fatigue in the match and ended up drawing 1-1. FSV were the stronger side leading up to Nadiem Amiri’s late equaliser from the penalty spot and could have gone on to win the game, hitting the woodwork twice.

The 05ers only made one change following the victory against Rosenborg, in this fifth and final game of a busy two-week period: Arnaud Nordin was given a start due to Paul Nebel’s suspension. There was also a milestone for Robin Zentner, who played his 200th Bundesliga game, all of which having come for Mainz.

No handball then no defence on the counter

The visitors started the game quickly and with energy despite their busy schedule, whereas the home side looked to sit back. This led to Mainz getting into the Wolfsburg box inside the first minutes, but without creating any sort of dangerous chance. There was however, a controversial incident after just seven minutes. Phillipp Mwene’s throw-in just missed Bell in the middle, striking the upper arm of Vinicius Souza in what looked like a deliberate action. There was no intervention from VAR however, with referee Sören Storks choosing not to have a second look at the incident. The frustration over this decision had only just started to die down when FSV found themselves having to defend an avoidable counter-attack. Lovro Majer picked the ball up on the halfway line unchallenged, before finding Zehnter 25 yards from goal. The full-back got a stroke of luck when his shot from the edge of the box deflected off of Caci and into the net (9’). It was a bitter pill to swallow for Mainz, however they reacted well and didn’t let their heads drop. Kaishu Sano picked up a rebound on the edge of the box and shot narrowly wide (11’), as did Lee after a low cross from Caci (20’).

The 05ers looked the better side and didn’t let Wolfsburg build up any sort of organised attacks, while also playing most of their football in the hosts’ half. Amiri had a shot from distance after winning the ball in the 25th minute, however Dominik Kohr’s header from the resulting corner was easily held by Kamil Grabara in the Wolfsburg goal. FSV found themselves breathing a sigh of relief again just two minutes later, as Dzenan Pejcinovic found his way past Sano and Bell with a bit of luck and shot just wide of the right-hand post. The last noteworthy chance of the first half came around the half-hour mark as Nordin curled an effort over the bar. VfL’s lead going into half time was extremely flattering.

Quiet second half until a gripping final few minutes

The restart saw the booked Stefan Bell be subbed off for Andreas Hanche-Olsen, who slotted into the Mainz back line and maintained the tempo from the first half. FSV had to wait a while before getting a decent chance, with set pieces and crossing opportunities wasted – that little bit of quality was lacking in the final third. The hosts were able to settle and hold on to their 1-0 lead by letting Mainz play in harmless areas of the pitch. The first real chance of the second half came in the 66th minute after a 20-yard shot from Konstantinos Koulierakis, which was saved by Zentner. Three minutes later, Henriksen made another two changes, bringing Nikolas Veratschnig and Armindo Sieb on for Mwene and Nelson Weiper (69’). Shortly after, the 05ers had their next chance. Another Amiri corner found Hanche-Olsen, whose blocked volley fell to Caci, although his scissor kick missed everyone in the box and the target (70’). This only gave Mainz more determination, and a minute later, an Amiri shot was deflected out for another corner by VfL captain Maximilian Arnold.

Wolfsburg still didn’t look too threatening, but with Bo Henriken’s side upping the ante, the hosts found more space to counter into. In the 77th minute, Mattias Svanberg had a shot from just outside the box which the Mainz number one had to save brilliantly. The final minutes were gripping, as FSV continued to attack relentlessly. Amiri became more and more involved in everything towards the end, with Kohr almost benefitting from his next cross. However, the defender’s header struck the post. Shortly afterwards, Ben Bobzien made his Bundesliga debut, replacing Nordin for the last eight minutes of normal time. After having another effort saved by Grabara, this time from Sieb, it was Amiri who finally gave Mainz fans something to smile about: VAR intervened to award Mainz a penalty after Koulierakis’ handball, and the Germany international stayed ice-cold from the spot and fired into the top-left corner. It was a well-deserved equaliser, but FSV wanted more and continued to push forward during the eleven minutes of added time. A pass from Lee gave Sieb an opening, but the attacker’s volley clipped the crossbar and went over. Although Svanberg’s two yellow cards in a matter of minutes saw Wolfsburg finish the match with ten men, there wasn’t enough time remaining for Mainz to take advantage.

The international break now gives the 05ers a chance to rest after a very busy period. Next up for FSV will be a meeting with RB Leipzig at the MEWA ARENA on Saturday, 13th September (15:30 CEST).