Heading back to Mainz with a sense of accomplishment

The weather on the Costa del Sol was once again at its best at the end of Mainz’s trip. The Mainz 05 players began Sunday with a yoga session accompanied by bright sunshine and a sea view. The 05ers are set to return to Mainz on Sunday evening following a six-day training camp in Marbella and they will be feeling positive despite their somewhat tired legs. “I think it was good that we came here,” said Christian Heidel, board member for sport. “It was also important to head home with a sense of accomplishment at the end of the trip.”

FSV ran out 2-1 winners against Champions League participants Feyenoord on Saturday thanks to goals from Jonny Burkardt and captain Silvan Widmer. Jan Siewert was pleased that many of the things that had been worked on over the last few days were noticeable against the Dutch side. “I just liked that we fought for one another and kept on defending aggressively. That was a crucial factor,” explained Mainz’s head coach, who also praised the conditions in Marbella.

The right attitude

The pleasant climate in Andalusia in January, a different environment and the superb conditions at the hotel in Estepona and on the training pitches at the Marbella Football Center provided the foundation for successful days. “This was better as a warm-up for the difficult second half of the season than staying at home. Switching off, getting closer together – it was the right decision considering the situation,” Heidel went on to say. 

The team’s hard work has laid the foundations for the remaining league games in the second half of the season. “We’ve made progress in terms of our work out of possession and defending aggressively during the training camp,” explained head coach Siewert, who is above all glad that all the players have got through the week in Spain without injury. 

Heidel: “It counts on Saturday”

Players returning from injury such as Leandro Barreiro, Maxim Leitsch and Edimilson Fernandes, but also those who returned at the end of last year such as Burkardt and Widmer were able to take further steps on their journey towards full fitness. Additionally, young players Lasse Wilhelm, Tim Müller, Marcus Müller and Daniel Gleiber fitted in seamlessly and demonstrated why Siewert took them to Marbella. Only three players didn’t feature against Feyenoord – Dominik Kohr (travelled home early due to private reasons), Stefan Bell (stayed in Mainz) and Josuha Guilavogui (rested). When the injured players are back available, “then we’ll have a good squad across the board and the head coach will have completely different options and will be able to react to form crises. Everyone has competition in their position,” Heidel emphasised.

Following a day off, the 05ers will begin their preparations for Saturday’s important home game on Tuesday at Bruchweg. They will go into these preparations with a good feeling following an intense week, whilst also knowing that things are going well. The game against Feyenoord showed that “there’s more there than the ten points we’ve picked up from 16 games so far,” Heidel stated. However, board member for sport Christian Heidel also made it clear that that’s not guaranteed. “It counts on Saturday.”