Following the conclusion of the international break, Mainz travel to face Holstein Kiel on Sunday for what will be the first match between the two teams in Bundesliga history (kick-off 15:30 CET). FSV go into the contest unbeaten in their previous eight away games, stretching back to last season. Furthermore, the 05ers recorded their first home victory of the campaign in their last match against Borussia Dortmund at the MEWA ARENA, propelling the team onto 13 points and up to 10th in the standings. Kiel, nicknamed ‘the storks’, pulled off their first-ever Bundesliga victory in their previous home match against Heidenheim. They currently sit on five points and in 17th position in the table.
Bo Henriksen spoke in his press conference about…
...squad updates: “Karim Onisiwo is ill and therefore will miss Sunday’s game. Jae-sung Lee and Hyun-seok Hong have now returned from international duty with South Korea and will be available for Kiel. Andreas Hanche-Olsen was back in training this week and while he isn’t at 100% just yet, he is on the right track. Both Moritz Jenz and Maxim Leitsch will also return to the squad, so we are looking strong ahead of this next match.”
...his expectations for the upcoming contest: “We know that we are in for a challenge against a good Kiel side. We already played against them in pre-season and won 2-0, but it was a tough game. It is crucial that we can deliver a performance just as good as the ones we gave in Freiburg and at home to Dortmund. If we can do that then I am confident that Sunday’s match will go in our favour.”
...the international break: “I think that a week without playing did us a deal of good. The positive feeling that we gained from our last two Bundesliga matches has far from disappeared. On top of that, we have great belief in ourselves that we can defend solidly. That is the most important thing, because we’re tricky to beat when we defend well.”
...FSV’s good form on the road: “It obviously says a lot about us how well we are performing away from home right now. That won’t be a factor going into the Kiel game though. The only thing that matters to us is to deliver a good performance and to come away with the win.”
...Mainz being favourites in Kiel: “It is obviously particularly important that we win against the sides below us in the table. It will be a tough game, for sure, but we love these sorts of matches. If we can remain compact and defend well then we’ll be in a good position to get the win.”
