Mainz 05 – Union Berlin

The home team will be closer to victory in the rescheduled game

This match was supposed to be the opening game of the 18th round of the Bundesliga, but was not held due to the stadium's unpreparedness for the deteriorating weather conditions. Last season for the rivals turned out completely differently. If Mainz did not show themselves in the championship and can only be proud of the direct influence on the determination of Bayern as the champion of the country in the last round, then Union Berlin for a while and claimed the title itself. Closer to the end of the championship the capital team focused on a place in the Champions League zone and successfully achieved it, taking the final fourth place. The current season already at the end of the first round has for both clubs inevitable signs of failure. Mainz are now in seventeenth place, four points behind sixteenth-placed Cologne. With a game to spare, Mainz's position is less hopeless. Union Berlin gave out during the first half of the championship the longest series of defeats among all clubs in the Bundesliga. Now the capital team is ahead of the upcoming opponent by six points, but this advantage can be levelled quite quickly. Bookmakers have identified the home team as favourites for the meeting, offering odds of 2.15 on their victory. As of mid-season, Mainz has only one win in nineteen matches. Despite the fact that it was over Leipzig, there is no reason to be proud of such statistics. In the last five rounds Mainz scored a total of two points and scored only two goals. The focus on defence allows the visitors to pick up points, but not in the amount that will eventually allow them to keep their place in the Bundesliga. Mainz are probably preparing themselves for a more daring game in the upcoming match, expecting to pick up three points. Union Berlin, having achieved the Champions League last season, failed absolutely all tournaments during the first half of the current one. At a certain point, the capital team had twelve consecutive defeats. Such results "did not survive" at the head of the club glorious Urs Fischer, sent into retirement. At the end of November, Nenad Bjelica took over the coaching position, who has never led his team to an away win until today. We bet that the home team will be closer to three points.